Lynx
by Darko
Summary: Face off. But who wins. Now completely finished!
1. Default Chapter

CHAPTER 1

Joss Darko ran. She had been running for twelve blocks and the seven men chasing her hadn't let up yet. She rounded a corner and pelted down the alley recognising the bar hidden away there as an English run establishment frequented by lovers of English and Irish folk music, run by a friend of hers, Ferdinand, a mutant like herself.

Wondering whether she should try to find a few of her friends inside to help her out Joss saw a brawl in progress through the window and decided against it. She noticed a man inspecting damage to the front windshield of his car and was tempted to go against her usual principles and hide behind him but noticing he stunk of beer, thought better and instead turned another corner only to find herself facing a wall.

Joss was beginning to regret trying to swindle her pursuers in their dealings, how was she supposed to know that one of those seven thick truckers actually knew the difference between a real 2ounce 24 carat Aztec diamond and the equally shiny glass kind? Perhaps it would be best to only sell her goods to her usual contacts on the black market in future.

Logan slipped out of 'The Acoustic Motorbike' where he'd been drinking, ducking as a chair sailed over his head out of the door cracking the windscreen of his new black jeep parked directly outside.

He growled in displeasure and contemplated going back in to finish the fight he'd started, he had been starting to regret hitting guy who'd knocked into him and neglected to apologise, but surveying the damage to his car any trace of remorse was gone, replaced only with regret for not having hit him harder_, that was Charlie's influence, _he thought, growing soft, shaking his head. Either that or he couldn't face the thought of going back in and enduring that awful guitar playing English man who'd been yodelling on the stage for the past hour.

The jeep wasn't really new but it was perfectly serviceable and Logan had grown rather fond of it over past two weeks, it didntt have the kind of accessories that could be found on Cyclops's motorbike but after he'd gotten that written off the month before in a crash he'd decided to get a car of his own. Cursing to himself he reached into his pocket for the keys but froze as he heard footsteps coming up behind him.

"Hey, Freak!" a gruff voice demanded.

"Oh great!" He muttered thinking it was probably _some guy from the bar who had him heal when the offender had hit him back and come looking for trouble. "_Sorry Charlie!" Turning round, preparing to kick some homo-sapien ass Logan was surprised to see that the speaker and the other six guys he'd identified by smell as truckers before he'd even turned around were not actually looking at him but were instead tailing someone in to the dark, wide alley that backed onto the side of the bar.


	2. A bit of a scrap

CHAPTER 2

Sniffing, Logan realised that the figure they were about to attack, probably kill and maybe worse was a mutant girl of no more than eighteen and very out of breath. Growling again he made his way to the mouth of the alley silently, sizing up the seven truckers; they were all pretty heavily built but hadn't yet cultivated the unique flab of a veteran trucker, he could take them and probably protect the kid as well. Probably.

"Oi, Mutie! Hey, I'm talking to you!" the leader said again stopping, as Joss reached the dead end, his arms crossed and feet apart no doubt enjoying the anticipation of what was to come. "Where you going? We still need to speak to you, teach you to try and scam us outta three hundred grand." he leered at her back before turning to his companions "She's a pretty one boys, we might have a bit o' fun with this one!" Logan growled in fury but remained in the shadows.

Joss stayed where she was not moving but Logan could hear her heart racing guessing her train of thought; the wall in front too sheer to climb, the seven men behind her too big to fight. He waited, knowing he should step in but interested to see how she handled herself, wondering if her mutation would be of any help.

He was correct, both of those two options occurred to her. Unfortunately his assessment of them both was also correct, what Logan didn't know was that Joss was also aware of his presence, not knowing whether he intended to join in with the truckers or to attempt to help her out she decided to count against him and help out herself, like usual.

_Turn to fight, change to something fast, run. _

To the eight men behind her, Joss appeared to come to a decision; squaring her shoulders she shouldered the large canvas bag she had in her hands and produced the short wooden bo staff Logan had noticed strapped across her back. Wielding it like an expert she executed a few spins in front of her and took a couple of paces towards them.

"Bring it on" she retorted, chin raised defiantly a fierce look in her dark eyes masking her fear.

_Kids got guts,_ Logan thought impressed,_ going to get her self killed though. Better intervene._ Stepping out from the shadows where he'd been concealed he announced his presence by kicking a can at the guy closest to him wearing a Sharks hockey shirt. It rebounded from his foot and he turned staring at Logan.

"What do you want?" he demanded.

"That a mutant?" Logan asked by way of reply nodding towards the girl.

"Yeah, you want a piece?" he asked, sneering, making Logan struggle to contain himself. He walked forward till he was just a few feet from the guy then extended his claws _snikt_ enjoying the look of horror that spread over his face before burying them in his gut.

"This a mutant, bub?" he growled, retracting his claws, and dropped the shark's fan to the ground. The remaining six men spun around one producing a handgun, two others brandishing knives.

Joss had no idea who this hairy stranger was but she seized her opportunity and brandishing her staff took out the lead trucker immediately with one loud _thonk_ to the back of his head, he went down like the proverbial sack of potatoes.

The smaller two of the remaining five, one wearing a deerstalker the other a baseball cap, rushed her while the lasting three advanced on Logan.

He took out one with little difficulty throwing him against a dumper. In the split second he had his back turned the man with the handgun loosed a couple of rounds into his back, roaring with pain and anger Logan spun around and ran at him. The man backed off in panic from this seemingly indestructible madman and started shooting wildly in front of him screaming.

"Get away from me you freak!!!" and continuing to shoot, a few bullets grazed Logan's arm but the rest sailed harmlessly past.

Joss meanwhile had gotten her back against the wall of the alley and was keeping the other two men at bay with a pair of short swords she had produced from her belt when suddenly she cried out in pain dropping one sword and clasping at her arm. She took her hand away and blood started pumping from a gunshot wound to her upper-left arm.

"Ow!! Ah...Fuck!!! Son of a bitch!!" She yelled, wiping the back of her arm over her face to clear her vision. Logan, keeping an eye on her as he fought saw her freeze as she brought it back down and caught a glance of exactly what it was she had spattered all over her face; Joss paused...pondered...realized...gagged... "Ewww!! Aww GROSS!!!" she shook her hand around wildly cursing.

Logan, finishing off the last of his guys ran over to see what was happening just as Joss slammed the deerstalker guy against some crates and drove the remaining short sword through his chest pinning him to the wall and twisted it before giving him a final kick and turning her attention back to her arm.

Logan raised one eyebrow, surprised at her brutality then turned to face the remaining standing man in the baseball cap, he wasn't moving. Logan frowned and moved around to his front

"Jesus Fuck!" he exclaimed; the guys expression was completely motionless, there was a thin, crimson trail of blood running down the centre of his face from a small round hole in his forehead showing threough to the alley behind him. A small prod in the chest from Logan and the body collapsed, hitting the ground with a resounding thud.

Logan grimaced and looked at Joss, remembering her wound. She was standing nearby with both short-swords retrieved and pointed at him. Her breath was strained and while the bullet wound in her arm was bleeding the worst she was also losing blood through a knife wound across her abdomen and a deep cut above her eye but her hands were steady and now, the fear he had seen in her eyes was gone, replaced completely with a feral kind of rage.

_Great, _he thought, _now she's not scared!_


	3. Who are you?

"Who the fuck are you?" Joss demanded punctuating her words with short jabs of the swords.

"Hey" he replied holding his hands up to show he was unarmed "It's okay. My name's Logan, I'm not gonna hurt you. You can relax."

"Really?!" she laughed "Well seven guys I never met before today just tried to kill me, I got shot, I'm covered in brains and now some crazy Edward Scissor hands wannabe is trying to strike up conversation with me. Go figure!!"

"Okay, fair point." He admitted "look, I live at this place.... a school for mutants where you can be safe from people like them...I really think you should come back with me." He pointed to her arm "We can fix that up." _Jeez, _he thought,_ I sound like Cyclops. _Joss looked sceptical.

"Yeah...sure you can." She bent to pick up her bag but had to steady her self against the wall. Trying again she stood up to find him still standing there. "Look I really appreciate you helping me out and all but I'm just gonna be on my way, thanks." She took a few more steps and found that she was in slightly worse condition than she had previously thought and staggered into the wall. "Once I learn to see straight again" she corrected, hoping that this, 'Logan' wouldn't try to off her whilst she had her back turned.

Logan took a step back allowing her to try but waiting ready to catch her if she fell. She had dark, almost black hair reaching down to her shoulder blades with bright flecks of blue and red most dye - some blood and tanned skin looking all the darker against the white cotton shirt she was wearing and set off by the bright gold colour of her eyes.

Despite her current state Logan got the impression that she was used to taking care of her self and would be very defensive and untrusting but he wasn't going to leave her here, the best approach, he'd learnt from Jean, was gently. He sat down on the ground next to where she had propped her self against the wall. Her eyes were closed but she was conscious of him and shuffled away a little, eyes remaining closed but building up a picture of him with her other senses.

"You know smoking is bad for you," she muttered "but then I guess you don't exactly have worry about the 'big C'." he froze one hand half way to his pocket reaching for a cigar; she hadn't even opened her eyes.

"Well, your one to talk" he replied clamping the cigar between his teeth determined not to show his surprise "and what makes you think I needn't worry?"

"Well, if two bullets in the back don't kill you I doubt a few hundred cigars will."

"Fair point" he conceded "but what about you? You know that stuff; it's supposed to affect your memory. I could smell it on you from the other end of the alley." She smirked and opened her eyes startling Logan; her pupils in the dark of the alley were almost the size of her gold irises. _Wow...she must have amazing night vision _

"Well that makes two of us. Those Cuban things stink." She held out a hand gesturing for a cigar of her own and he obliged lighting it for her knowing he'd get told off by the professor for it. "Thanks"

"No problem. What's your name?"

"Lynx" Logan rolled his eyes_; well it's more imaginative than Iceman! _

"What's your real name?" he asked. She regarded him for moment as if deciding whether or not to trust him then smiled wryly.

"Joscelyn, Joscelyn Darko, but it's just Joss; I can't stand Joscelyn."

"You got a home Joscelyn, Darko?" he asked but secretly hoping he could take her back with him, she seemed a lot less annoying than the other kids he was used to and considering how much pain she must be in she hadn't complained yet at all.

"No, no I don't..."she paused frowning "Not any more." He nodded understanding.

"Lots of families find it difficult to accept that you're a mutant." He said consolingly.

"It wasn't that!" she said defensive again. "They never knew...they were killed when I was six."

"I'm sorry" Logan replied "How old are you now?"

"Sixteen"

"You've been looking after yourself for ten years?"

"Mostly, when I manage to avoid social bloody services."

She stopped suddenly aware of sharing something personal with this strange man and wrapped her good arm around her legs shivering a little.

"Here." Logan said feeling sorry for her wrapping his leather jacket around her shoulders noticing the two neat holes in the back. "Sorry about the holes." She pulled it close around her.

"S'okay."

"What's your mutation?" he asked changing the subject "Looks like you've pretty good night vision."

"Yeah," she replied, "I don't really have the energy to demonstrate but I can shape shift. It's pretty limited though; I can only do cats. I also have all the heightened senses of a cat, which is pretty handy in the dark." She turned to him half frowning "I don't know why I'm telling you this, you're not exactly the type of person I go usually spilling my guts to, there isn't a type of person I usually go spilling my guts to." Logan shrugged indifferently but was secretly pleased "Are you a psychic, are you fucking with my head?" she demanded, he laughed.

"No, certainly not! Going by the psychics I know I'd say you seem to have to be an intellectual to be one of them and I am most certainly not an intellectual. But don't you ever tell anyone I said that! I guess I just give out trusting rays!"

"What is your mutation then, apart from bullet proof hide or whatever?" she laughed "you could be like, 'Kevlar Man'!" Giggling too much she started to splutter, coughing blood. Finished she leant back against the wall catching her breath. He regarded her resting next to him and imagined taking her back to the school; one of kids trusting him might start a trend. Whilst the kids disappearing as soon as he entered a room could be entertaining it did grow tiresome.

After a while she lifted her head meeting his gaze where she held it for a long time. He cocked an eyebrow questioningly; her golden, cat-like eyes disconcerting him and he began to wonder if she was a psychic.

"This school of yours" she began after a few minutes "it wouldn't have an infirmary would it?" he smiled and stood up shaking his legs out.

"Thank God for that. I was starting to get a little cold on the ground there!" he looked down "You coming kid?"

"Patience is a virtue, Logan!" she admonished struggling on to her knees and with one arm pulling her self up the wall, winced as her body complained at the continued physical demands being put upon it. He sighed and bent down picking her up in his arms

"Not when you've already lost about three pints of blood its not Joss." she began to protest but only out of principle and after a moment, feeling weak and surprisingly sleepy, rested her head against his chest and allowed him to carry her over to the jeep setting her down in the passenger seat before going back for her bag, short swords and staff which he threw in the boot, _Cyclops would certainly not approve of a student have weapons in school_. He didn't want her to get kicked out before she even enrolled, he was starting to like this kid.

"Hey, Joscelyn stay awake please!" he said getting into the drivers seat beside her and noticing her head droop. _Dammit! _He thought _why didn't I just chuck her in the trunk if she didn't want to come? I don't want to turn up at the school with a dead kid! _

__


	4. ‘Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters’ ...

_Okay, it occurs to me that I have not posted a disclaimer in any of my previous chapters so I'll make it known now that Joss is my creation and as such belongs to me. Every other character featured in this fic is the property of Marvel (I think, not me anyway) unless otherwise specified._

_Please don't sue me...I don't have shit._

_4_

It was a forty minute drive back to the 'Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters' but Logan made it in fifteen, still, Joscelyn was unconscious by the time they arrived but breathing steadily. He picked her up gently and carried her up the steps kicking the front door open.

"Jean!" he yelled heading for the recreation room where he could hear the television on. She met him in the corridor, accompanied by Cyclops, concern spreading over her face as she saw what he was carrying.

"Logan, what the hell? Who is that?" Cyclops demanded, "What happened to her?"

"Her name is Lynx" he answered unsure why he didn't tell them her real name. "She needs a bit of patching up."

Jean led the way to the infirmary in the lower levels of the school and indicated for him to lay her on the table then removed Logan's jacket and gasped at the amount of blood on the wrong side of the girls' skin.

"Logan what happened to her?" she asked cutting away Joscelyn's ripped shirt to clean the wounds. "Who did this?"

"Some of our friendly homo-sapien cousins." He replied drawing her attention to the bullet wound and removing the tourniquet he had applied.

Jean watched him work for a moment amazed at his delicacy and care with this strange girl before remembering that she was the qualified physician and took over bandaging the wounds.

Logan had wanted to stay in the infirmary with Joss whilst she slept just in case she woke up but Jean had ordered him to bed (his own unfortunately) saying he needed rest so he was surprised when the professor woke him in the early morning with a telepathic message:

Logan, can you make your way to the infirmary immediately please! He quickly pulled on a pair of jeans and a clean t-shirt and ran barefoot down to the lower levels.

"What happened?"he asked running down the corridor. Jean, Cyclops and Storm were all standing outside of the closed infirmary doors with the Professor looking anxious.

"Young Lynx woke up earlier than expected and attacked Jean!" Scott answered angrily; he had always preferred the helpless scared kids to the ones who could actually take him in a fight.

"It's okay Scott" Jean assured laying a hand on his arm; she had a red mark and slight swelling around her right eye threatening to bruise. Logan was reminded of the time he had almost strangled her upon waking up in the same position Joss had found herself in. "She's just scared. Logan we were hoping you might be able to talk to her, if she recognises you, you may be able to calm her down." She looked concerned "I'm worried about her; she's still hurt and there are scalpels and drugs in there." He nodded and started for he doors.

"I'll talk to her, she'll be fine" he told her reassuringly.

"Oh yeah" muttered Cyclops to himself "because Logan is such a sensitive soul!" Logan spun round and came to face him threateningly, growling. Cyclops, to his credit didn't back down but after a moment leaned past Logan to hit the keypad unlocking the infirmary and gestured towards the opening door. Nodding curtly Logan stepped inside and closed the door behind him resisting the urge to drag Cyclops in with him.

Entering the room Logan barely had time to register her presence before he was bowled over by Joss and found himself lying on his back with her perched on his chest holding a scalpel painfully close to his Adams apple.

"You Fuck!!" she breathed pressing still harder "a school for mutants" she adopted a pretty convincing imitation of his voice "yeah sure!! This doesn't look like a school to me! You think I've never woken up in a lab before?!"

Her breathing was laboured and she shook her head as if clearing her vision. Logan felt something on his chest and looked down to see blood dripping from the freshly opened wound on her stomach.

"You know that's the second of my shirts you've ruined in less than twelve hours, I'm gonna have to start charging you for these."

Caught off guard by his humour she pushed off of his chest and stood back allowing him to get up, he did so slowly, being careful not to move suddenly. Joss was standing a short way off eying him suspiciously still clutching the weapon.

He approached her slowly speaking in what he hoped was a reassuring tone, stopping when she started to emit a low, rumbling growl very much like that of a big cat.

"I didn't lie to you. This is a school, the woman you attacked is teacher here, and her name is Jean. There are three others outside: a woman with long white hair called Storm, a geeky looking guy with red shades called Scott or Cyclops and an old bald guy in a wheelchair, his name is Professor Xavier, he's the principle, there are others too, all mutants." He approached a little more, stopping when the warning growl started up again. "I would have introduced you earlier but you were more than a little unconscious." She thought for a while before nodding, still a little wary. She had, had more than one unpleasant experience waking up in a strange place in the past but felt , for some reason she couldn't place that, she could trust Logan.

"Yeah, okay" she granted. "Sorry. Was that women...uh, Jean too pissed? I was a little surprised; waking up to see a big ass syringe next to your head can be quite disconcerting."

"That's okay." He said gently "Pity you didn't hit Cyclops though, I get in slightly more trouble if I do. You can join me in his bad books though for hitting his fiancé." She cringed.

"Fiancé?"

"'Fraid so. Don't worry she's already forgiven you and the only one who really cares what Cyclops thinks is Cyclops." She sniggered and he relaxed a little.

"So if this really is a school" she asked, "what do you teach?" Logan hesitated no one had really asked him what he actually did all day before, although Storm had suggested that he teach gym he was dubious; most of the kids were afraid of him and he thought they would probably skip class.

"I'm more...umm...maintenance/security." He replied "not really one for the classroom. This place is all right though, you'll find out for yourself if you want to stay. You don't have to pay anything; the professor funds all of the students here." _God_, he thought, _I really sound like Cyclops, trying to force the poor kid into learning!_

"Somehow I don't think these people are going to want me to stay here after I tried to kill one of them." She replied, glumly.

"Hey, they took in one guy even after he set fire to their jet; I think they can get over one black eye. Do you want to stay?" she looked up at him and shrugged forlornly.

"I want to be able to stay anywhere for more than a few days without someone trying to kill me." Logan knelt down next to her and frowned.

"Why exactly were those guys trying to kill you?" she smiled guiltily

"I may have tried to do them out of a few hundred grand." he cocked one eyebrow.

"How?"

"Well, I figured that what with the whole being stupid truck drivers thing they wouldn't have slightest idea what to look for in a 2ounce 24carat diamond." She shrugged. "Unfortunately, they did." Logan cast his mind back to the headline of the newspaper he hade been reading the previous morning, something, he remembered about a 2ounce 24carat diamond being stolen from the New York city museum. He looked at her suspiciously.

"You haven't been to the New York City Museum recently have you?" Joss blushed.

"Why would I want to do that?" she asked innocently "Their security's shite." He raised his eyebrow again but decided that the less he knew about it the less Professor Xavier could fish out of his brain at a later date.

"So, you wanna stay then?" she considered for a moment. She was very tempted by the concept of a permanent home though taking lessons might be a bit of a drag.

"Yeah, go on then."


	5. New beginnings

Standing up Logan reached down and hauled Joscelyn up by her armpits setting her down on her feet and dusting off her shoulders in mock seriousness.

"Now, you gonna come meet your new teachers?" she nodded imitating his solemn manners and followed him over to the door staying close behind him as he opened it and stepped through revealing Storm, Cyclops, Jean and Professor Xavier all waiting anxiously in the corridor. They rose and Jean stepped forward smiling

"Hello Lynx, I'm Jean. How are you feeling?" Joscelyn scowled and backed up behind Logan, who smirked triumphantly at Cyclops.

Cocking an eyebrow at Joss, Logan took her by the shoulders and steered her in front of him letting one hand drop he kept the other resting on her right shoulder both protective and reassuring at the same time. "This is Joscelyn Darko." He announced.

Jean tried again and held out a hand, which Joscelyn begrudgingly shook.

"It's just Joss." she muttered avoiding eye contact.

Professor Xavier wheeled forwards and smiled at Joss, the same genuine, warm smile he used for all of his students.

"Hello Joss, my name is Professor Charles Xavier, welcome to my school for gifted children; mutants such as yourself and everyone else here." She responded with a brief nod but still refused eye contact, which surprised Logan, as she had been so self-assured around him, he figured she was worried that they would chuck her out for hitting Jean He turned to the Professor and placed his other hand on Joss's left shoulder and pulled her a little closer to him, aware that he probably looked possessive but not wanting to let go in case she ran.

"I said she could stay." He told them, becoming aware that he was avoiding the professor's gaze much as Joss had and raised his eyes to meet it.

All four of the mutants in front of him were grinning at them both; he grew irritated and felt Joss bristling with anger beneath his hands. "What?" they both demanded simultaneously answering their own question.

Xavier smiled at them amused. "I believe you've found a kindred spirit Logan, and stay she must." He turned his gaze to Joss whose golden eyes met his compassionate blue ones for the first time. "Welcome Joss. How would care for a tour of your new home?"

She stammered a little overwhelmed at the trust these strange people were showing and turned to Logan for help, receiving no more than an amused smile she returned to Xavier and shrugged emphatically.

"Okay"

"Good" he replied turning and starting back down the corridor towards the lift "and yes, of course Logan can accompany us."

She turned to Logan frowning

"Psychic?"

"Yup."

"Aha"


	6. Skips a few weeks

Joscelyn Darko a.k.a Lynx had been at the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters for four weeks, she had already spent seven evenings in detention for refusing to turn up to several classes and was grounded to the mansion for the next two weeks for being involved in several power duels with the older students.

Despite all of this Professor Xavier was pleased at how she had settled in at his school, she had made good friends with Remy Lebeau with whom she would converse for hours in quick fire French about their various thieving exploits. Not necessarily something he wished his students to count as their greatest achievements but considering that both students were pretty lonesome otherwise he allowed it. She was at the top of all her classes despite never having actually attended school since her parents were killed when she was just six years old.

Most of Joscelyn's time was spent hanging around the school grounds with Logan, they had been going drinking in the nearest bar most days until Scott had found out and put a stop to it much to their disappointment.

There were mixed opinions amongst the staff of the school about the close relationship between the two; Scott maintained that Logan was a bad influence on all of the children what with his drinking, smoking and gruff manner. Jean, Storm and Hank pointed out that Joscelyn had been all of these things already and that not only was Logan providing the kind of father figure that she needed so badly if she were to be controlled, but that Logan had become noticeably less bad-tempered since he had been spending time with her and was starting to get on better with all of the students. The Professor abstained, giving the impression, as always, that he knew something the rest of them didn't.


	7. Joss is in trouble, again

It was a Wednesday afternoon after classes and Joscelyn was, not for the first time, sitting in the Professors study in front a very stern looking teaching body. Professor Xavier was sitting behind his desk opposite her looking very angry, there were not many things a student could do to truly anger him, but Joss had found one. She avoided meeting his eyes and instead concentrated on the sunlight reflecting from the top of his head.

"Joscelyn," he began tersely "would you mind explaining to me exactly why you decided it would be a good idea to attack Mr Summers?" She looked up, glancing briefly at Scott who was holding an icepack to the side of his face, and replied morosely.

"I didn't attack him. I hit him, there's a difference." Professor Xavier remained patient as ever.

"Very well, why did you hit him?"

"He was asking for it."

"I'm sure he wasn't."

"You know what I mean!."

"You mean he said something you didn't like?"

"Pretty much."

"What did he say?" she opened her mouth to answer, but frowning closed it again, clenching her jaw tight.

The Professor could sense that she was very angry and struggling to stay calm but pressed on anyway knowing that with Joss, making her lose her temper was often the only way to make her give up some kind of information.

"Joscelyn?"

She raised her golden eyes once more and scowled at Scott

"Why don't you ask him?" All eyes turned to Scott who, removing the pack from his face to reveal an angry looking swelling on his left cheek, turned to the Professor.

"She was late arriving to Physics this afternoon and subsequently refused to participate in the lesson..." he began.

"...That stuff is remedial" Joss interrupted angrily, forgetting that she was already in a considerable amount if trouble "there's no point me even being there." Scott continued, ignoring the interruption.

"I asked her to see me after the class, so that I could speak to her about her behaviour and maybe arrange some individual work for her in accordance with her ability but she was surly and uncooperative." There was a snigger from Joss' direction, closely echoed by one from the other end of the sofa where Logan was sitting. The professor shot him a look but ignored Joss and gestured to Scott to continue.

"I told her that I had every confidence in her ability to surpass all expectation in her classes if she would apply just five percent of her intellect to her studies, that she obviously wishes to learn and is more than capable of teaching herself or she would still be at the academic level of a six year old rather than that of an incredibly advanced seventeen year old."

Jean stepped forward, looking puzzled.

"I don't understand why this would upset you Joscelyn, Scott wasn't putting any undue pressure on you to work." Joscelyn raised her eyebrows and smiled grimly.

"Well, let the boy finish. He hasn't gotten on to his specialist subject yet." She adopted a tough military voice and barked "Discipline!"

Again Logan sniggered in his corner and was this time silenced with a glance from Jean.

Scott sighed and went on, somewhat reluctantly. "I said it was understandable that she would have difficulty adjusting to having restrictions imposed upon her for the first time in a very long time but that it was necessary in a school environment to impose a little discipline, even if she had gone without any for over ten years." He paused.

Joscelyn from her chair motioned with her hand for him to continue, "Go on." her anger had been replaced by a wry amusement as she that he knew he had been out of line. Scott looked at the Professor who already knew where it was going and received an encouraging nod.

"I might have implied, well said, that maybe her parents didn't bother to try bringing her up properly before they died." Logan snorted angrily from his corner

"Fuck Cyclops, over the line!" Scott shot him a fiery look but didn't reply.

"And that's when she hit you?" Storm asked

"No-oo" he replied, "She then said and I quote 'Hey, Fuck you. You don't know shit!' I told her that kind of language betrays a limited vocabulary."

"And that's when she hit you?" she asked again

"Yes."


	8. Counselling!

There was a long silence eventually broken by Logan lighting a cigar and being told off for offering one to Joscelyn, then Joscelyn being told off for accepting and refusing to relinquish it until Logan was persuaded to demand it back. When finally the cigar was deposited in the bin, much to both of their protestations, the Professor revealed his decision concerning her punishment.

"I think Joscelyn" he began, sternly but no longer with the anger he had shown earlier "that it would be prudent to place you in evening detention for the next week starting tomorrow. This time will be spent with myself or Dr Grey developing an appropriate curriculum for you in accordance with your ability." She glowered at him but didn't interrupt, "You will also attend three times weekly counselling sessions with Dr McCoy to learn to control your temper and begin to work through your various issues." She sniggered incredulously.

"Oh God, bring on the detention, but fuck off I need counselling!"

"Can we not use that turn of phrase in conversation, please Joscelyn!" he warned, she reminded herself not to push him and calmed down a little.

"Sorry, but the fact still remains, I do not need counselling. I don't have 'issues'" she placed this last word in inverted commas with her fingers in the air, Hank raised his large blue eyebrows questioningly.

"I rather think I'll be the judge of that, Miss Darko, off the top of my head I can think of six very serious issues that need addressing urgently. But I won't go in to them now if you don't wish me to." She scowled, but remained silent, counting silently on her fingers as she tried to think what he could be counting as an 'issue' but only reached three before stopping, she shrugged to herself and looked up at Professor Xavier who was watching her closely, his blue eyes looked deep into her golden eyes and he smiled slightly.

"No, Joscelyn. I don't think that was one of the things Dr McCoy had in mind." She returned the smile and shot another thought at him, Logan with his heightened sight could have sworn he saw him blush slightly and shot a quick glance in his direction before changing the subject.

"I'm concerned, and please excuse the assumption Joscelyn but you know it to be justified, that these sessions are unfortunately very likely to involve Dr McCoy sitting alone in his study waiting for an absent subject, am I correct?" Each of the assembled members of staff nodded, Joscelyn looked over at Logan who grinned at her.

"So" the Professor continued "how are we going to assure that this doesn't happen when we know full well, that not one of us is considered worthy of the subject's word?" A few suggestions were discussed before the Professor turned back to Joscelyn a smile playing on his lips. "Ah, but of course! Logan is deemed worthy, is he not? An excellent idea, Joscelyn."

"Dammit!" she exclaimed, "Quit reading my mind!!!" she clapped her hands over her head and scowled out from between her arms. Logan laughed and prodded her with his toe from his end of the couch.

"You think I'm worthy of your word, Joss? I'm honoured! But how does that help?" she responded by wrestling his boot from his foot and depositing it in the bin next to her before sighing in resignation and rolling her eyes.

"The idea, I think, is that seeing as how I trust you, if I were to give you my word that I will go to these head shrinking sessions with Ol' Blue over there, then I would be obligated to keep it."

"And you would be responsible for ensuring that she does." Added Storm "even if it means carrying her there in a cat basket."

"Hey, don't suggest that until you travelled long haul in one of those things!" Joscelyn responded before turning to the Professor hands in the air.

"Okay, I give up." She turned to Logan and placed one hand on her chest, the other in the air, "Logan I give you my word that I will go get my head shrunk by Dr McCoy three times weekly or whenever the whim takes him. Now, please take me drinking?" she looked at him pleadingly and he shrugged.

"Fine by me, Charlie?" Professor Xavier frowned at them both

"I suppose it will do. But Logan please take this seriously, you are for the most part responsible for Joscelyn now. And NO drinking!" she scowled and Logan winked at her.

"Can I drink?" he asked, the Professor sighed impatiently.

"If you must, but please try to remain sober." Logan stuck his tongue out at her and they both left.

The remaining staff began bombarding Hank with requests to stop the young mutant swearing, smoking, drinking, fighting etc. until he assured them that he would be dealing with all of those things and more.

_Please please please please please review! T'is a great crime to read without reviewing!_


	9. An unwilling subject

It had been decided that the counselling sessions would take place every Monday, Thursday and Saturday between the hours of six and seven o'clock. The first Monday arrived and as six thirty rolled around Dr Hank McCoy found himself waiting patiently in his office, alone. Chin resting on his large blue hands watching the door, he knew that she would turn up eventually and that he could keep her there for as long as he wished once she did.

A few moments later and his suspicions were confirmed buy a thudding on the door.

"Come in" he called and was not overly surprised to see the door opened by Logan, he was carrying a small, struggling, grey cat by the scruff of its neck and getting his hand scratched badly by the sharp claws of its back paws.

He held the cat out towards Hank before depositing it on the chair.

"Stay!" he ordered and the cat stayed, looking as sulky as it was possible for a cat to look. "Good girl!" He cooed patronisingly, briefly scratching the top of the grey head with his large hands she raised her head and he scratched under her chin before nodding at Hank and leaving, closing the door behind him.

Hank turned back to where Joscelyn had been left and watched as she changed rapidly back from a small grey feline to the teenage mutant girl he was supposed to be counselling. She was wearing a pair of black cut-off jeans to just below the knee and a sleeveless red t-shirt that declared her to be the 'Property of the Pennsylvania Psychiatric Ward', she had thought it to be appropriate given the occasion but he was not impressed; the top of her head was covered by a black bandana almost the same colour as her hair, decorated with a pattern of red, circled pentacles.

"You're late." He told her.

"Yes, I am." She replied, challenging him to start an argument but he didn't, instead he pulled her file from the open draw next to him and handed it to her. All it contained so far was a picture, a short description of her mutant abilities and various diagrams of her DNA. She looked it over and handed it back unimpressed.

There was a silence as they each studied the other. He knew this wasn't going to be easy, she was the most difficult student in the school to counsel not only because she was so confrontational but also because she had the intelligence to be as difficult as she chose to be. He was however confident that she would eventually begin to trust him and open up. Until then he would have to persevere.

She was the first to break the silence, something he knew to be a good thing.

"So, Dr McCoy," she said settling back in her chair. "counsel me!" He sighed and leaned forward on his desk.

"Joscelyn..."

"...Joss" she interrupted but not rudely so he let it go and continued

"It's important that you understand that you are not being made to attend these sessions as a form of punishment but as a way to help you. As I told you on Wednesday I do think that you have several issues I have been wishing to address and I was speaking to the Professor about arranging a program of sessions with you even before the unfortunate incident involving Mr Summers." She beamed

"That did bruise something beautiful didn't it!"

"I do hope you're not proud of that fact!" he reprimanded sharply "I don't expect you have apologised to Mr Summers yet, but you should be ashamed of your actions." She was quiet for a moment and Hank was about to continue a little more gently when she looked up again.

"I'm not ashamed you know. I mean, I realise it wasn't necessarily the best course of action but I don't think that's going to stop me doing it again should the occasion arise." She paused "Is that one of my issues? Because, you know, I really can't get past three on my list, but affectionless psychopathy has a certain ring to it." He was surprised at her knowledge of such a term but reminded himself of her intimidating high results in the standard subject and IQ tests she had sat upon her arrival and continued.

"Yes, I think it is one of or at least part of one of the issues we need to address at some point. Anyway I would like to preface this by assuring you that if there is anything you particularly wish to talk about or don't want to talk about you just tell me and we'll talk about something else. I would also like to remind you that I am the one in charge here, not you. I am the authority figure and expected to be treated as such. Okay?" she shrugged, something he hated but he continued, rifling through his papers for sometime before finding what he was looking for, something Joss hated, she made a mental note to shrug more often.

"I was hoping to gather a little something about your past before we go much further if you don't mind" she looked up sharply and he thought he saw a flash of alarm in her golden eyes before she caught herself and returned to her state of indifference. "Shoot."

"Now, your parents died I believe when you were six, yes?"

"They didn't die, they were killed." She stated shortly.

"Ah, okay. What did you do in the ten years between your parents death and arriving here?" he asked, watching her carefully, pen poised.

"I don't want to talk about my parents." She muttered, he noted that down.

"I'm not asking you about your parents, I'm asking what you did after your parents. Did you go in to state care, live with friends?"

"No"

"What did you do?"

"I don't want to talk about this." She blinked back images the images threatening to surface in her mind and shook her head. Hank noticed that she had begun to rock back and forth ever so slightly, suddenly looking every bit like the six year old he was trying to discover. Taking pity on her and cursing himself for prying so deep so soon, he nodded and making a further scribble of notes smiled at her.

"Would you like a lollipop?"

He held out the tub of sweets that he kept in his desk for the younger children, hoping she wouldn't be insulted. But it had the desired effect, she stopped rocking, reached in and just like a small child hovered there for a moment examining the options before she took out a lemon one with a plastic stick. Joss had always hated the way the paper sticks came apart in her mouth and wasn't sure Hank would appreciate her spitting it out on his plush carpet. He put the jar away and watched her unwrap and inspect the sweet closely before putting it in her mouth. Looking up she seemed to remember herself and smiled a little.

"Thank you."

"No problem. What would you like to talk about?" she shrugged again and he resisted the urge to tell her off.

"Why don't you tell me my list of six issues that need addressing urgently?" He smiled, glad she was willing to continue and produced a list he had written up whilst waiting for her late arrival; Hank was a prolific note taker.

"Well, we've got; the topic of your parents, which we will leave for a later date" she inclined her head in agreement "anger management, inability to trust, substance abuse, alcohol abuse, violent tendencies." He had been ticking them off on his fingers and now stopped holding up his hands. "Six very deep issues I'd say wouldn't you?" Joss laughed, he waited for her to finish. "I'm glad you find it amusing." She took the list from him and read it again.

"It's not amusing, it's fucking hilarious!" she giggled a while longer before returning his list and noticed that he did not look at all amused, she stopped laughing. "What? Come on, you don't seriously believe all this shit? Substance abuse? What, have I been mainlining heroin in to my fucking eyeballs every morning and not noticed it?" Hank remained stern.

"Firstly, please refrain from using such language in these sessions, I won't tell you it betrays a limited vocabulary because I don't particularly wish to be assaulted today but you can take it as said. Secondly, do you not think that the smoking of marijuana comes under the heading of substance abuse? I know Dr Grey certainly thought it did when she chose to inform me of the results of your weekly blood tests. Mind altering substances are illegal for a reason Joscelyn." She looked suitably subdued and remained silent allowing him to continue.

"The same goes for alcohol abuse." she pulled a face, he continued "Would you agree that the consumption of half a bottle of single malt every evening to knock yourself out before being carried to bed constitutes alcohol abuse or dare I say alcoholism?"

"Logan," she said angrily "Bastard!" Joss sat up late with Logan most nights helping him through a bottle of Jack Daniels until she fell asleep and he carried her to bed, they had agreed that anything they talked about in their late night sessions would stay there, she was surprised he had gone back on that. Hank shook his head.

"Again your blood tests showed evidence of it and Logan's refusal to comment merely confirmed my suspicions. My senses are almost as sharp as yours or Logan's, Joss, and both whiskey and marijuana have strong odours, you know that."


	10. A favour

Logan, after taking Jocelyn to Hanks office had gone in search of Scott, he found him working in the physics room stacking boxes of books outside the store cupboard. He noticed Logan lingering near the doorway, always reluctant to enter the used classrooms.

Scott straightened up looking wary as he always did when alone with Logan.

"Logan"

"Scott" Scott was surprised that Logan called him by his real name instead of Cyclops as he usually did in that slightly patronizing tone he hated so much.

"Can I help you? Are you looking for Joscelyn?" Logan entered the room and took the second of the two heavy boxes Scott was trying to hold without looking like he was struggling and placed it on the desk.

"No-oo, I left her with Hank a few minutes ago, only half an hour late." He smiled slightly, again Scott was surprised that Logan was being almost friendly but he didn't want to push it so he tried to reciprocate.

"Then what can I do for you? I assume this is about Joscelyn." Logan nodded, he looked uncomfortable.

"I wanted to ask you…" he paused, then started again, refusing to meet Scott's eyes, like a chastened child. "Joss had been told that she has to apologise to you, and she will but…" Scott listened, frowning.

"But?"

"But you know as well as I do that she probably won't mean it," Scott nodded.

"Yes, but I did rather expect that. What did you want to ask me?" Logan hesitated; he hated what he was about to ask.

"I wanted to ask you….as a favour to me" Scott raised his eyebrows and nodded for him to go on, he did, cringing he did so "to accept her apology and leave it at that…I know that you do care about the kids here, and she is just a kid despite everything." he finished looking at Scott almost pleadingly. Scott thought for a moment to check that he hadn't just imagined Logan asking him to do him a favour that would actually benefit someone else.

"Why are you asking me this, Logan? I would have accepted, I know she's just a kid, that's why I hate to see her drinking and smoking like…" he tailed off.

"…like me?" Logan finished for him, Scott nodded a little, smiling slightly. "I'm asking because I thought that you would make a big deal about it and I know that if you argue with her she will probably hit you again and I might not be here to stop her and… I don't want her to get into anymore trouble."

"You really care about her, don't you?"

"Yes" Logan squared his shoulders daring Scott to take the piss but he didn't, just nodded.

"Okay, I'll accept her apology and leave it at that." Logan nodded and turned to leave, pausing in the doorway he turned back.

"Thanks." he said awkwardly and left before Scott could reply. He watched him go, smiling, Logan had just gone up a great deal in his estimations.

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Hank started a new page in the notebook devoted to Joss as she continued to confront all of his attempts to broach the topic of her changing her habits.

"If you are not dependant on alcohol," he continued "then surely you will have no problem in cutting it out of your nightly routine." She raised both hands in protest.

"You're being unfair!"

"How so?" he asked

"Well," she began "You want me learn to control my anger and stop smoking weed but half the time when I'm riled up the only thing that can steady me out is a joint. And you want me to keep to a normal sleep pattern and stop drinking when that'll just make my sleep worse!" He frowned, noting it all down

"Why?"

"Because drinking myself out is the only thing that keeps the nightmares away…" she stopped suddenly cursing under her breath but it was too late. He stopped writing.

"Nightmares?"

"Fuck, fuck, fuck" Joss muttered avoiding his eyes, she had promised herself he wouldn't find out about that.

"Joscelyn?" he tried, she looked up.

"Well, I mean, everyone has nightmares don't they." She said casually, looking at the wall. He wasn't convinced but before he could press her anymore she had glanced at her watch and standing up, exclaimed. "Wow, what do you know it's seven o'clock. It was a pleasure talking with you. Bye." And before he could respond she was gone. He leaned back in his chair and sighed. This was going to be difficult.

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Logan found Joscelyn sitting, brooding on the roof of the mansion among the chimneystacks where she went to smoke. He sat down next to her without a word, took the joint from her hand and had a drag from it himself before offering it back she took it and between them they finished it quickly staring out at the woods surrounding the school grounds.

After a while she sighed at looked down at lawns where they could see Hank strolling across the lawn next to the Professor.

"Why is it," she asked thoughtfully "that everything's just fine until it's decided you've got 'issues' and then suddenly you do?" he laughed

"I don't know. But I do know they're trying to help you." She looked at him smiling and feigning paranoia

"They've gotten to you to haven't they!" he laughed again

"Well, Hank did speak to me after your meeting today, he wants me to stop you smoking and drinking. I said I'd see what I could do. I'm also supposed to ask you about your nightmares." he looked at her questioningly.

"I'm sure you'll see for yourself what they're like now I'm not allowed to employ my second defence." She replied grimly and he hoped she wasn't right, he had often heard her disturbed sleep and gone to wake her, scared and shivering but refusing to discuss them, he could understand this, not liking to discuss his dreams either so he would just stay with her until she went back to sleep then sneak back to his own room. His own nightmares.

"Second? What's the first?" she grinned, slyly.

"Company." Logan raised his eyebrows, knowing what kind of company she meant.

"Any specific company?"

"Male. But it doesn't have to be sex. Just someone there."

"But, of course, there's no objection to more?" He asked, she nodded, smiling.

"Hey!" he said suddenly. "You still need to apologise to Cyclops!" he held a hand over her mouth as she started to protest. "You promised!" Joss rolled her eyes, mute and sighed in resignation. He removed his hand and she followed him reluctantly back down the tiny stone staircase hidden behind a statue in the top levels of the mansion.

Scott was still in his classroom, now putting all of his boxes back into the cupboard, he noticed the two of them by the door but Logan knocked anyway then, planting a hand in Joss' back, shoved her into the room.

She walked over to Scott hands in pockets staring at her shoes and stopped a few feet from him.

He folded his arms and looked at her expectantly, she glanced back at Logan who looked on amused and scowling she turned back to Scott still not looking at him.

"I'm sorry." she muttered, "I shouldn't have hit you, it was the wrong thing to do and I…" she paused trying to remember exactly what the Professor had said "…I understand that you just want what's best for me so..." she grimaced "...I apologise."

He smiled at her and glanced at Logan.

"That's okay Joss. I know that if you wanted to you could probably have done much worse than this shiner." he indicated his cheek, which had now moved through to a mixture of deep purples and greens. She raised her eyes a little and smiled faintly, gratefully.

"Right, well…umm...thanks." she backed of little before turned and almost jogging to the door. Logan nodded briefly to him before disappearing after her and Scott was forced acknowledge that maybe he wasn't such a bad influence on her after all.


	11. A Nightmarish Night

That night Logan sent Joss to bed at eleven completely sober, if a little miserable, assuring her that he was right next-door. When she had arrived Joss had been given the room next to Logan's in the corridor he was supposed to supervise and, coincidentally the one that got away with the most.

He was lying awake a few hours later not looking forward to his own dreams when he heard a noise in the next room, pricking up his ears he listened intently and could hear her through the wall moaning and crying out. He slipped out into the corridor in his jeans and knocked gently on her door, no response, checking down the corridor he opened the door and approached her bed. She wasn't in it.

Joss was on the floor in the corner, still asleep and in the middle of a very deep dream, crying out and shouting, in a language he recognised as Gaelic though he only caught a few words, and trying to get through the wall, repeatedly ramming her head against it.

Logan rounded the bed and reached out a hand towards her placing it on her shoulder and shaking her gently

"Joss? Come on Joss wake up, it's just a nightmare." The very second he touched her, her eyes snapped open, pupils completely contracted in fear and she spun around throwing him, with considerable strength, across the room into the chest of drawers opposite.

He was still getting up when the door opened and Jean entered followed by Scott and Storm.

"Logan!" she noticed him standing there, shirtless, pulling a large piece of the wooden chest out of his bare back, gritting his teeth against the pain. Storm moved forward and had just reached him when they heard a low growl coming from the corner; turning round they found themselves confronted with a very large, very pissed Bengal tiger.

Logan moved Storm behind him and glanced at Jean.

"She was having a nightmare" he explained.

"We know." Scott answered, "Jean saw it too." Jean nodded

"It was horrible" she said, "poor girl, she's terrified."

The tiger was advancing slowly growling and baring it's teeth.

"And a little pissed." Storm added.

"Jean," Storm asked "how much of that tiger is a wild tigers mind and how much is Joscelyn's mind?"

"Its hard to tell," She answered, "One is so full of fear the other anger, it's like they're one and the same…Logan what are you doing?" she gasped.

Logan was moving slowly towards the tiger, crouching down slightly to bring his eyes level with hers all the while he kept his hands out in plain view and maintained eye contact with the animal.

The tiger now backed up against the wall snarled and raised a large, clawed paw ready to strike. Logan stopped and raised his left shoulder just in time to protect his head, but his shoulder, taking the full force of the blow, was knocked out of joint and opened up halfway across his back with three deeply, bleeding gashes.

Rolling under the raised paw Logan grabbed the tiger by the neck with his good arm, forcing it onto its back and extended his own claws until they nicked it's throat, all in one fluid movement. Knowing it was beaten the wild animal lay still, growling and he began speaking to it softly, soothing in the language Joss had been speaking, andrunning a hand down its long bodyuntil the growling ceased and was replaced by a quiet whimpering as the full grown predator before him changed back into the mutant girl it really was.

Logan continued speaking to her quietly in that beautiful language until she stopped knocking her head on the wall and allowed him to take her in his arms and rock her back into an exhausted, dreamless sleep.

As soon as she was asleep he stood up and wincing walked over to Scott

"Here, take her for a second would you?" he held her out and passed the sleeping girl in to his arms then excused himself and stepped out of the room. Scott exchanged confused looks with Storm and Jean, wondering what he was doing until their question was answered by a loud thud and the sound of a shoulder being forced back into place followed by a sharp grunt of pain making them all cringe. A moment later Logan stepped back into the room rolling his shoulder in the joint and, holding out his arms, took her back without a word.

* * *

They all went down to the infirmary where they were met shortly afterwards by the Professor who had also experienced her dream. It seemed that while Joss was not psychic her mind was powerful enough to mean that the two in the building who were psychics picked up her nightmare because it was so vivid.

Jean administered a sedative to Joss to keep her in the dreamless sleep she had slipped into while she cleaned the cuts on her head from pounding it against the wall.

"Logan," she warned "I want to x-ray that shoulder later and give you a jab. We don't know what that tiger was carrying."

"That tiger," he snapped angrily, "was Joss and she's not 'carrying' anything!" Jean looked a little shocked, Logan had never snapped at her before. Storm was inspecting his back where the last marks of the claws were fading and quickly changed the subject not wanting an argument.

"What language was that you were speaking Logan?" she asked "It was beautiful." He took the scrubs shirt she handed him and pulled it over his head before answering.

"Irish Gaelic, it's her mother language." She looked surprised.

"That's an unusual language to know, why did you learn it?"

"I didn't" he answered, "I just know it. I've never found a language I didn't." he waved the back of his hand in the air indicating his claws "Package deal."

"Why didn't you say?" Storm exclaimed, "You could teach languages here!" he shook his head and pulled up a chair next to where Joscelyn was lying unconscious.

"No, I'm no good with kids" he replied "wouldn't know how teach." Before she could challenge this he turned to Jean asking, "How long will she be out?"

"Well" she responded "the drugs should work for about nine hours but she's absolutely exhausted so it could be much longer."

They all sat around the table at the other end of the infirmary discussing her dream with Hank, who had arrived shortly after the Professor. The Professor and Jean relayed all they could remember of it and Logan translated the few words they could recall between them as 'Mama' and 'Daddy'.

"It was mostly just images cobbled together into a repeating sequence" Jean explained "Darkness, blood, bodies I can only assumed belong her parents, horribly mutilated and a tall, thin figure laughing the whole time, but I never saw its face. Horrific." The Professor nodded in agreement.

"It's not surprising that she allowed herself to regress so deeply into the tigers mind, all that power must be quite reassuring."

Hank blamed himself for making Logan refuse her drink and digging up memories of her parents but Logan revealed that she did in fact have nightmares most nights anyway, just nowhere near that bad, that he'd experienced. He came under fire for not telling someone and left to sit across the room with Joss.

* * *

It was just four hours before she woke up. Logan was sitting next to her bed reading when she began to stir, he leaned forward as she opened her eyes, squinting as her pupils contracted sharply at the bright light in the large white room.

Her eyes stared into the middle distance for a while, closing again as memories of the previous night flooded back.

"Hey, kid." Logan said gently, smoothing a lock of dark hair from her face.

"Hey." she answered weakly

"How you feeling?" she responded with a look and he smiled. "Yeah, I can imagine." There was a silence.

"Sorry I tried to kill you," she said after a while and he showed her his back.

"No permanent damage. Bloody hurt though, damn good thing it was me you got." She laughed a little, struggling on to her elbow.

"Well, you're the only one fool enough to approach a full grown Bengal tiger when it's cornered." She plucked at the shirt of her green flannel pyjamas covered in a large bloodstain. "This yours or mine?"

"Mine." She raised her eyebrows

"Wow, I got you good."

"Knocked my shoulder out of joint" she winced.

"These were nice pyjamas! They glowed in the dark!" he snorted, feigning offence.

Joss reached out and took Logan's copy of "Pride and Prejudice" laughing and throwing off his protests that it was the only book in the infirmary as she pointed out the bookshelf in the corner.

He tried to wrestle it from her and they ended up sparring in the large open space next to the door, the book forgotten, both enjoying the opportunity to practise the skills not really needed in the mansion as they both switched from one form of martial art to the next trying to drop the other to the ground.

They were circling each other trading friendly fighting banter when the door opened and Professor Xavier entered with Jean, Storm, Scott and Hank all in tow. They all took in the situation and leapt to the same conclusion.

Jean, using her telekinetic powers, threw them apart and held them both suspended fifteen feet in the air. They turned to her, surprised, and Joss struggled in the air trying to kick Logan, who was just out of reach.

"Jeanie," Logan teased from the air "if you want to join in you've got to obey the no powers rule!" realising she had been mistaken Jean blushed and released them dropping Logan a little further from the ground than Joss, he landed deftly on his feet and grinned flirtatiously at her.

"What were you doing?" she demanded rushing over support Joss, who shook her off irritably.

"Don't," she protested, "I'm fine." Jean frowned

"The sedative I gave you shouldn't have worn off for at least another five hours yet. What woke you up?" she shot a look at Logan who held up his hands in innocence. Joss shrugged.

"I don't know, guess I just metabolise it quicker than others." Jean frowned again but let it go.

"How are you feeling?" asked the Professor wanting to talk to her straight away but Logan put a stop to their questions demanding that they let him get her breakfast and have her change and shower pointing out her bloodied pyjamas. They consented and they left, still playfully shoving each other down the corridor.

Professor Xavier sent a psychic message to all of the children in the mansion declaring what he liked to call an occasional day where they could all do as they wished so that he could spend the day with the rest of the staff trying to decide what to about Joss.


	12. Pancakes and professions

_Hello All!! Hope you all had a grear Christmas/Hannuka/Sulk in the Dark!! Haven't updated for ages i know so, by way of apology, i present ye with a longer chapter that will hopefully provide a little more insight into Joss._

_As always, pleease please please please please please please please please please review!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_

* * *

She came out of her bathroom dressed and showered, her hair, just towel dried, sticking out in all directions, to find Logan sitting cross-legged on her bed tucking into the enormous stack of pancakes Storm had delivered. Holding out a fork he gestured towards the pile of sweet, sticky pancakes and Joss quite willingly joined in. 

Swallowing his mouthful Logan looked up at Joss, he was worried about her, just because he didn't go on at her like the rest of them it didn't mean that he wasn't concerned but he just didn't know how to make her listen to him without her feeling cornered.

Noticing his gaze, Joss looked up and detected the worry in his eyes. She was about to try and steer conversation round to something neutral when, before she could think of anything, he spoke.

"When are you going to tell me what happened, Joss?" she looked away, he didn't, just waited, eyes steady.

"Why would you want to know that? It's not exactly a topic for light conversation." He continued to hold her gaze.

"I don't want light conversation I want to help you."

"Why can't you all just leave it be? Huh?" she snapped, "Why must everybody want to help, I've been fine on my own for ten years I'm not about to accept help now! What makes y'all think I want to remember it?" she was standing up now, angry, frustrated, still scared.

Logan rose and approached her but she backed off and gestured with her arms for him to keep his distance, growling deeply. He apologised and persisted, she growled louder in warning.

Eventually, after a few minutes, when he came over to her she allowed him to take her in his arms and hold her still till she calmed down and huddled into him.

"Maybe it's worse," he began, quietly, "to remember the bad things that have happened to you than it is to have no recollection of them at all."

"I'm sorry." she apologised, her voice muffled in his shoulder.

"S'okay, I'm hardly known for my calm temperament." She raised her head to look at his face.

"Do you really want to know?" he nodded

"I really do." She sighed and sat back down,

"Okay, but I haven't told it before so you'll have bear with me."

* * *

It was a warm summer evening in County Cork, Ireland, not the hot sticky kind but the kind that carries both the left over heat from the day and the cooling salt winds from the sea. A young family were sitting laughing on the front lawn of their large house, surrounded by stables and fields of beautiful purebred horses, the best in the country. 

Jake Darko and his wife Morgan were happier than they could ever have conceived being; drinking their daughters chocolate milk as ordered and watching as she tried, unsuccessfully, to dress their large black mongrel, Ted, in her yellow summer dress.

Gazing out over their land Jake stiffened suddenly as he saw a movement on the boundaries of their forest. There had been news of murders in the surrounding area recently, horrible, brutal murders.

Standing up he started to move the plates and cups from their early dinner into the kitchen, Morgan always alert to his moods sensed his unease and followed him in to the house.

"What's the matter, Jake?" she asked, concerned. He peered out of the window across at the forest and frowned.

"I'm not sure," he replied "I thought I saw something on the boundary of the woods. It's probably nothing." He turned back to his wife and tried to smile but she wasn't buying it.

"Lets bring Joscelyn and Ted in, it's starting to get chilly anyway." She headed out on to the lawn and froze. "Jake!" she called, starting to panic. "Jake, she's gone! My baby's gone!"

Jake dashed out the door just in time to hear the ear-piercing scream of his six-year-old daughter from behind the house.

They both ran around the side of the house to find her crouching, sobbing on the floor Ted in her arms, her white cotton dress covered in blood. They rushed to her side; Morgan pulling her daughter away, checking her over and Jake stooped to look at the dog. He was already dead, split open down the middle, ribcage exposed to the warm evening air. He took of his jacket and laid it over the body.

"Joscelyn" Morgan demanded "what happen to you?" the girl stopped sobbing and dragged a small arm over her eyes.

"We were just playing" she began, sniffing "and he started to growl at something in the barn…he ran around the corner and I went after him but then he was all bleeding and crying and I don't know what he did!" she burst out crying again and fell in to her mother arms.

Jake stood up abruptly, taking charge.

"Morgan, get Joscelyn inside lock all the doors and windows then call Len O'Bannon, tell him to get him and his boys round here sharpish. I'm going to bring the horses in. Don't let anyone in, unless it's me or Len." She nodded and scooping the child up hurried inside.

Jake had trained all of their horses to respond to a high-pitched dog whistle so he managed to bring them in pretty swiftly and locked them all in their stables hoping that he wasn't just taking away their only defence; flight.

Turning back towards the house he darted into the shadows of an empty stall as he heard a sound outside. It was a low, menacing laugh…no, more a giggle but not the endearing giggle of his daughter, the chilling giggling of a grown man out of sorts. Staring out through a crack he saw the lean figure of a man pass the door to the stables heading for he back door of the house.

Steeling himself, Jake made a mad dash for the front door; through the carefully tended flowerbed and vaulting over the gate he pounded on the door.

"Morgan!" he yelled "Morgan, open the door."

His heart stopped as he saw her through the frosted paned glass of the door. The figure loomed behind her, looking over her shoulder at him with pale pink eyes and a sickly smile. She had no idea as she neared the door reaching out to let him in frowning puzzled at his frantic gestures to look over her shoulder.

Through his hazy view he screamed at her to run but his words wouldn't penetrate through the glass. Just as the pink eyed murderer reached out for her there was a piercing cry from inside the house and he saw his daughter in the doorway to the hall.

"Mama!" she cried out "He's behind you!" Morgan spun around just as the figure swung back a long arm. A long arm becoming longer. The fingers of it's hand melted together, curled round, the skin down to the wrist hardened and became a shining, black, wicked looking claw,

He brought it whistling through the air slicing her beautiful gypsy style face in half down to the white of her skull.

She screamed and clutched at her face blood pouring forth, between her fingers. Jake roared in fury and hurled himself against the door, crashing through the glass and flying at the man, now approaching his terrified daughter.

Before he reached her, the clawed intruder had lashed out with his long arm and torn at his back, Jake arched backwards in pain exposing his stomach, which was promptly opened up, down the middle, releasing his intestines to pile out onto the polished wooden floor.

Morgan, in the corner, attempting to hold her face together, peered through her fingers and seeing her husband kneeling, prone on the ground tried to struggle to her feet but couldn't bear to remove her hands from her mutilated face.

"Jake!" she cried, he turned his deathly pale face to her, screaming as their sallow skinned tormentor raised a deathly claw once again and slit her throat bringing it round in a wide arc and removed his head completely.

Joscelyn was cowering against the wall silent and staring. Wide, brown eyes taking in every minute detail of the picture in front of her. Her mother's body, both pieces of her father, the increasing pool of blood spreading across the floor towards her.

The man snickered again drawing her eyes to him. He was standing about 6'7", skin so pale it was almost transparent, flecked with thin spidery veins. His eyes, the pale pinkish colour of drained flesh, were full of amusement.

"Hello, little girl," he spoke, in a creepy, childish voice and she pushed up against the wall as far away from him as she could get, her small, bare feet slipping in the slick pool of blood moving closer to her. "Want to play?" he asked, approaching wielding the bloodied claw.

Joscelyn's breath quickened and she found that she was completely paralysed. Filled with an indescribable terror that rushed through her veins and ran down her brow.

She was wishing more than anything that she was big enough to knock the man who killed her parents down and run away as fast as she could. Praying to all the pagan gods she could remember her mother teaching her, she suddenly found that her movements had become more fluid, controlled, her senses sharpened. She could smell the blood from her parents, mingling with her own sweat, adrenaline and the faint stench of vomit and bile this threatening stranger carried.

He had paused is his approach and was looking at her strangely; Joss' eyes had changed from the dark brown of her mothers eyes to a the bright golden colour of summer corn, she had stopped scrabbling away from him and turned to face him. Maybe this little girl was not what she appeared.

Joss felt a rush of exhilaration; as if she had spent her life driving an old tractor and had suddenly found herself behind the wheel of an AC Cobra. Crouching down on her heels she uttered a low guttural growl and, not quite knowing what she expected to happen, threw herself at her would-be killer.

Half way through the air the small, six-year-old girl changed into a lithe, powerful young lioness and barrelled into the stunned man in front of her and pelted out of the door, across the fields and all the way through the forest. Branches whipped against her face, the ground passed beneath her feet at an astonishing speed but she didn't stop.

Ten miles away from her home the lion stopped and changed back into a small girl in a blood stained white cotton dress and bare feet. She lay panting on the bare earth for half an hour before crawling into a hedgerow, curling into a tight ball, and staying dead still until the darkness of the night enveloped her.

As the moon rose and a church struck midnight in the distance Joscelyn emerged from the shelter of the bushes and staring at the moon cried out into the darkness, screaming until her throat bled and dogs began howling for miles around.

Not knowing how to bring on the change into the form she had taken moments before, she continued as she was, away from her home with no notion of where she was going, only wishing to put as much distance between herself, the dismembered bodies of her parents and the man who had killed them as she possibly could.


	13. Jelly attacks

Joss finished telling her account and leant back silently against the headboard of her bed, watching Logan. He hadn't said a word for the whole time she'd been talking and now he sat quietly staring, shocked into the middle distance.

Joss, to her surprise, found that she felt rather light-hearted, to use a cliché, as if a great weight had been lifted. She had spent almost every night of her life since that fatal evening reliving what had happened but had never once brought her self to tell it to any of the few people who had asked. She glanced up at Logan who blinked, coming out of his reverie and stared down at her compassionately; she stared back feeling quite cheerful now she had finally shared her biggest worry with someone.

"I had no idea." he stammered "My God, Joss…it's…it's so…" as she had been talking Joss had slipped back into the thick Irish accent she had been concealing for the last ten years but now she spoke easily with it, enjoying the way it rolled naturally from her tongue and promised herself that she would conceal it no longer.

"Told you it's not exactly light conversation, but you know I think Hank was right. I really feel much better for telling you." He was still staring at her, his dark eyes wide with surprise and compassion.

She smiled positively at him and was surprised when he suddenly reached out and wrapped his strong arms around her and held her to him tightly.

Never one to pass up a hug from Logan she leant into it and allowed him to get the emotion out of his system. Logon didn't know what he could possibly say to get across the way he felt but, knowing she felt safe in his arms, tried to make her understand. She did, no where felt as safe for Joss as in Logan's company and she lay her head on his chest closing her eyes. It was almost five minutes before he pulled her back and looked deep into her eyes.

"I promise you that I will never let anything like that happen to you ever again." He said it so vehemently that she found it hard not to smile.

"I don't think that's awfully likely; only got one set of parents."

"You've got me now." She beamed and punched him playfully, embarrassed.

"I don't think there's much chance of you dying before I do. Anyhoo," she stood up and dragged at his arm. "Come on, the Professor is going to want to make Hank give me more sweets…I mean counselling!" he laughed, glad that she had perked up so much and followed her downstairs teasing her about her accent.

* * *

The others were just as surprised by her seemingly new accent as Logan but didn't say anything. Joss was embarrassed that they had seen her in the condition she had been in the night before and remained quiet as the Professor spoke to her, well aware that if it had been anyone but Logan to approach her, they would probably have been killed. 

She had thought that the Professor would be angry with her for attacking another of his X-Men but he was all kindness and compassion. He had asked that he and Hank be left alone with her but she shot Logan a pleading glance and, with an approving nod from Professor Xavier, he planted himself in the red sofa in the corner behind her.

Joss had agreed to let the Professor read her mind so that he could see what she had told Logan, he would also be projecting it into Hanks mind, so that he had a good idea of what exactly he was working against in their sessions.

Professor Xavier wheeled over to her and, holding his hands on either side of her head he, searched inside her mind for the night eleven years ago that had scarred her so badly, deliberately bypassing the most recent decade as promised. Joss wasn't sure she wanted the Professor or Hank to know about many of her friends or exploits since she had arrived in America.

The images bombarded her vision as she saw what the Professor and Hank saw, everything she had told Logan, all over again for the ten thousandth time.

When they had seen everything Charles pulled away shocked and looked at Hank who was staring at Joss with the same expression on his face as had been on Logan's. She squirmed and scuffed her feet on the floor uncomfortably.

"Hey." Logan called quietly; Joss turned around "You okay?" he asked, she nodded and got up to sit next to him, the other two in the room still trying to sort through the assortment of new images in their heads, oblivious. He put an arm round her and she rested her head on his shoulder, waiting.

After a few minutes Charles and Hank came round from their meditations and had a brief telepathic conversation

_Did you have any idea, Hank?_ Charles asked. His brow furrowed in concern.

_No Sir_. Hank replied, in his head _I knew that they were killed but I assumed there had been some terrible accident or something, nothing like that. Little wonder she's like…_

_Like she is?_

_Exactly._ Professor Xavier turned and addressed Joss. She stirred a little and nuzzled her head in Logan's shoulder, fast asleep; the sedatives from Jean and her exhaustion from the previous night kicking in again.

Logan prodded her and she grunted but stayed out. "She's gone." He told the Professor. "Jean did give her enough to knock her out for twice what she lasted, guess the rest just kicked in. Can I leave her here?" the Professor nodded and Logan lay her down on the red leather sofa, his jacket around her shoulders, she murmured something unintelligible and pulled it round her, his familiar smell soothing her sleeping mind.

The three men crept out and proceeded to Hanks study to continue their conversation.

They decided that the sessions with Hank would continue and that if she consented, Logan was to sleep in her room, on the floor of course, to hopefully calm her from her nightmares without waking her so no one would get hurt.

Logan chose not to ask what would happen if he were to have a nightmare himself.

* * *

Joss woke up and, rolling over, fell off the sofa, not landing on her feet. Cursing, she scrambled to her feet and changed into a small Lynx, her favourite form and the best for moving around the mansion; big enough to stop the smaller kids picking her up but small enough to avoid scaring them. 

She snuck out of the study and padded off towards the kitchen listening out for anyone else in the general vicinity. She heard Bobby begging Kitty and Jubilee for mercy in the recreation room, John giggling round the corner and Logan talking to Professor and Hank down the hall.

Coming up on the kitchen she paused, Storm was in there chatting to Jean about Hanks biceps, Joss wasn't sure she wanted to hear that but she hadn't eaten since her pancakes that morning and, glancing at the clock in the hall saw that she must have been asleep in the Professors study for about five hours, she was very hungry.

Entering the kitchen still in lynx form she moved behind the breakfast bar unnoticed and tried to open the fridge with a grey, clawed paw. No luck. She tried her jaws and, successfully opening the door, let out a surprised snarl as she was hit by a falling bowl of still liquid jelly.

Storm rounded the bar and burst out laughing, Joss shook vigorously, her fur sticking in all directions and growled a little before changing back.

"Yeah, real funny." she scowled good naturedly, "I'll just go shower, again." She turned and, grabbing an apple from the side on her way out, went back up stairs to wash the jelly out of her hair.


	14. Take out

Joss didn't show for dinner that evening and Logan, who rarely ate with the others was uneasy. He had been determined not to let her out of his sight and didn't like not knowing where she was. Professor Xavier did a quick psychic sweep of the mansion and assured him that she was in the library, perfectly safe. He stayed where he was but ate his spaghetti as quickly as humanly possible and, dumping his bowl in the sink, went off to find her.

The Professor was right; Joss was in the library, sitting at one of the large wooden tables in front of a laptop typing furiously. She heard him come in but didn't look up.

"Hey," she greeted, distractedly.

"You've missed dinner." Logan informed her, dropping into the chair opposite hers. "There was spaghetti." She crinkled her nose and waved a cartoon of Chinese noodles in his direction. "Where d'you get that?" he asked, seeing the New York City address on the cartoon.

"Delivery." She answered, not taking her eyes off the screen in front of her. "Hand me that screwdriver would you?" she gestured in his direction and he handed her the tiny tool, frowning as she used it to removed the back of the laptop.

"Does the Professor know what you're doing to his computer?" he hesitated, "Do you know what you're doing to his computer?" she laughed and looked up for the first time.

"It's my computer and yes, I know exactly what I'm doing." she pointed at a small chip next to his elbow and he handed it over. "The lab computers are far to primitive for my needs, I'm just helping this one on it's way to becoming a computer superior." she grinned at him and, finishing up, replaced the back. Looking satisfied as the screen lit up at greeted her in a male, computerized voice.

"HELLO JOSS" She tapped on the drag-pad a few times and it repeated itself, this time in a female voice. Interested now, Logan moved round the table and sat next to her watching as her fingers moved expertly over the key board bringing up dozens of windows and sending dozens more away.

"When did you get this?" he asked, not remembering her having had one before.

"Delivery," she replied again, "friend of mine in the city sent it."

"And what exactly are you doing with it?" he asked again, picking through the assortment of discs next to her.

"Hacking into the police records," she replied casually, around a mouthful of noodles. Logan inhaled a little too much cigar smoke and started coughing, his eyes watering.

"What?" he asked, thinking he had heard wrong. "You know that's very illegal!"

"Uhuh." she nodded and continued typing. A new window appeared bearing the NYPD seal and demanding a password. Joss brought up another window and after typing a few short commands was granted access easily. She made a small grunt of satisfaction and Logan held his hands over the keyboard.

"I shouldn't be letting you do this." He warned, "What if it gets traced back to Charles?"

"It won't" she replied simply.

"How can you be sure?" Logan demanded

"Because I have the signal bounced off of fourteen different addresses in Europe and base landed in New Guinea." He didn't understand this but she seemed convinced, and Logan could think of a few reasons for wanting to see the PD database, so he let her continue.

* * *

Twenty-five minutes later Logan and Joss were cowering shame faced in front of Hank. It turned out that he had installed an alert system on to the schools computer network to inform him if anyone in the school was using the computers for anything illegal. He had caught them red handed, having finished what they went in for, checking out the police records of members of senate. It had proved quite interesting reading, until they were caught. 

"Well, just what exactly do you think you were doing?" Hank demanded angrily, they opened their mouths to answer but he interrupted. "No, don't start. Have you any idea the trouble you could get in for violating the State Privacy Laws?" Hank, when angry could be quite an intimidating figure what with his blue fur standing up and his seven-foot figure looming overhead.

"We wouldn't have gotten caught." Joss tried, but he wasn't impressed.

"Really?

"Really." she confirmed

"The signal was bounced off fourteen different addresses in Europe and base landed in New Guinea." Logan added, Joss smirked, knowing he had no idea what that meant.

"Do you know what could happen to you if you were caught." Hank asked again

"First offence; a warning and ban from use of all computing equipment for six months." Joss answered promptly.

"And was this your first offence?"

"Maybe." Hank sighed and turned on Logan.

"I suppose you think she's in the right?" Logan shrugged

"We weren't doing any harm."

"That is not the point. You were breaking the law! Violating the right to privacy of some very important people!"

"Every time I have a joint I'm breaking the law," Joss interrupted, "you don't throw a hissy fit about that." Logan smiled at the mental image conjured up but stopped when he noticed Hanks nostrils flaring.

"Were you searching for anything in particular before you got side tracked by Senator Dowry's fascinating past?" Hank asked, visibly trying to calm himself. Logan looked sideways at Joss as she answered, hoping that she'd decided, as he had, that maybe it would be best to stop pushing Hanks boundaries soon.

"You told me that I should try to think of someway in which to achieve 'closure'" she said, catching Logan's meaningful glance and agreeing. "So I was looking for any records that might show me who he was." Her voice lowered near the end and she dropped his gaze, knowing that wasn't what he had had in mind. Hank frowned and leant back against his desk.

"You mean the man who…"

"…Yeah" she interrupted, not wanting to go into it for the third time that day.

"Why? Why do you want to know more about him?" Hank asked, praying she wasn't planning what he thought she was.

"So I can find him and kill him." She replied, bluntly, confirming his fears.

Hank sighed and massaged the bridge of his blue nose, between his thumb and forefinger, closing his eyes.

"Joscelyn, would you excuse us for a moment, please?" he asked tiredly. She glanced at Logan uncertainly, but he nodded so she went outside into the corridor closing the door and sat cross-legged on the red carpet running down towards the main entrance hall.

* * *

Professor Xavier came upon Joss sitting on the floor on his way into the kitchen for a pot of tea. He had been grading a stack of English essays and was feeling quite pleased with the overall high grades he'd been able to give out, noticing Joss looking very small on the carpeted floor he wheeled over to her and stopped, smiling down. 

She looked up, expectant, unblinking eyes waiting for him to say something and he found that she thought he was there to tell her off again. Not liking this schema he was fitted into he resolved to be extra friendly.

"I'm glad to see you Joscelyn." He smiled again, "I was very pleased with your essay on 'The Millers Tale' you got the highest grade in the class, I found it nearly impossible to find fault with it. Well done." She smiled, a little.

"Thanks."

"I did rather get the impression though," he countered, "that your heart wasn't really in it. In fact I'm very surprised you had any notion of what the tale was about considering the scrutiny the middle distance has been getting in my classes of late." She smiled a little more, shaking her head.

"Well, I've read it before, but I found it rather boring. Chaucer seems pretty overrated to me." She paused suddenly, cocking her head to one side, concern showing on her face as raised voices penetrated through the door.

The Professor looked at her questioningly, preferring to hear from her what had happened rather than take it from her thoughts. She flinched guiltily as the voices rose still higher.

"In trouble again." She muttered. The old man smiled and leaned towards her conspiratorially.

"Would you like to join me for some tea?" Joss pulled a face; he tried again. "Hot chocolate?" she inclined her head in acceptance but paused, looking back at the door and the noise behind it.

"Leave them to it," the Professor advised "they'll burn themselves out eventually." Casting one last look at the door she sighed and followed him in to the kitchen.

Returning from the kitchen Professor Xavier opened the door to his study and Joss carried the tray bearing their drinks in and placed it on the large wooden desk. She sat uneasily in the chair opposite his desk and Charles noticing her disquiet reached out to her mind to see what was troubling her as he poured himself some tea, earl grey, hot.

"I didn't ask you here to tell you off on Hanks behalf, Joscelyn." She looked mildly surprised and he continued. "Although if you wish to talk about it…" she shook her head.

"You already know what he's pissed about." His face hardened and she checked herself, "sorry, what he's angry about…and you know why I did it?" she watched him anxiously. He nodded.

"Yes, and I'm afraid Joscelyn that whilst I can understand your reasoning I cannot condone it. Murder is always murder and I honestly don't know that you will ever be able to find him. Can you even be sure he's alive." Joss nodded.

"I'm sure." She took a sip of her drink, pursing her lips as she paused. "And as for finding him, I've certain friends that can find anyone…given the right incentive."

They both sat in silence for a while, Charles, noticing her furrowed brow, tried reaching into her mind but she had put up a mental wall to shield her mind, he could easily have broken it if he wished but it would have gone against his greatest principles.

Joss opened her mouth to speak but, frowning and shaking her head slightly, closed it again. Charles looked at her enquiringly.

"It's Logan." she sighed eventually

"Yes?" Joss paused for a while longer, trying to put her feelings into words.

"It's just that, it seems to me…all he's done since I got here, is worry about me." Charles shook his head.

"I know that is not the case." He told her, knowing it wasn't. She continued, heedless.

"And now, he's in trouble with Hank again, because _I_ was breaking the law."

"It wasn't the first time he's allowed you to do so though, was it?" he asked, thinking of the smoking and underage drinking.

"That's not the point." Joss argued

"I rather think it is" the Professor countered

"It shouldn't be," She responded angrily, "Logan should not be held accountable for my actions. Its not fair."

"Who do you believe should be?" he asked, she hesitated as if this hadn't occurred to her before.

"Uh…well me I guess…if anyone."

"If anyone?"

"Well," she answered "If I were to be held accountable for everything I've done…I'd never she the light of day again. But I would rather that than someone else taking it for me."

"Why?"

"Where's the honour in that?" Charles was surprised at the vehemence with which she spoke of such and antiquated virtue.

"Honour is very important to you?" Joss was surprised that he needed to ask.

"Isn't it you?"

"Of course, but it's unusual for someone of your age to hold honour in such importance." She nodded in understanding.

"Most people my age have little use for it. But it's important in my world. Loyalty and honour are the most important things we've got. Not only are we thieves, juveniles and stoners. We're also mutants. It's important that we all stick together, it's what makes us family."

"Family?" Xavier questioned, confused. She smiled self-depreciatingly.

"We're not a proper family. More a mob, a gang if you will but we'd always go to the mattresses for one another, no questions asked." He smiled at the film reference before continuing.

"I trust you mean your friends in the city?" she nodded in confirmation "I like to believe we have that here." She nodded in assent.

"I'm sure you do. I was actually hoping I could introduce you to a few of them, especially the younger ones."

"Certainly!" he replied eagerly. "How young are the younger ones?" she frowned for a moment thinking.

"We think they're about eight, but they're not sure. Twins, psychics actually, I think they'd like you."

Before Charles could ask any more questions, the door was thrown open by a very angry looking Wolverine.

"Charlie, can I take Joss?" Charles nodded and Logan jerked his head at Joss. She drained her cup and giving the Professor a silent wave followed him obediently out of the room. Trotting to keep up with him as he strode down the hall grumbling angrily about Hank and his "sanctimonious bullshit."

* * *

_Hey y'all. Thanks for reading and as usual please review! For asnyone still waiting for the next chapter of 'Gravities Weaknesses' watch this space. I'm working on it!_


	15. Company

That night, as Joss changed in the bathroom, Logan set up a camp bed on the floor next to her bed but, testing it out, snorted angrily and took it down again deciding the floor would be more comfortable.

Joss emerged from the bathroom wearing a pair of blue and white mans boxer shorts and a white t-shirt, Logan raised an eyebrow at them, she raised one back. He was wearing a pair of loose black slacks and no shirt.

"You bled all over my PJ's!" he asked if she couldn't have borrowed some, she shook her head solemnly. "Besides, these smell like Zeke." He sniffed at her and wrinkled his nose in distaste. Joss threw a cushion at him and he dropped it to the floor where he was to be sleeping. She looked at the blanket laid out on the carpet, critically.

"You sure that'll be enough." He shrugged and lay down on his back, hands behind his head. She frowned in mock concern. "But what about your poor old mans back?"

"Hey, watch it kid!" Logan warned. "I'll bring you down here with me." He smiled suggestively, flirtatiously,she played along.

"Maybe I'd better keep talking, find out what all the fuss is about!" Logan propped himself up on his elbows, grinning.

"There's fuss?" she opened her mouth to reply when they were startled by the sound of someone clearing their throat by the door.

Turning sharply they found Scott and Jean standing in the doorway, both looking apprehensive.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Logan?" Jean asked, "You two sharing a room?" she was smiling as she said it, knowing that they had only been playing, that their relationship, whilst being very close, was not ofthat nature, but was serious in her question, they both grinned avoiding her gaze.

Scott looked a tad sterner.

"Do you think that maybe you should be wearing a shirt, Logan?" he asked, stiffly. Logan looked down at his bare chest and slacks.

"You going to give me yours, Cyke?" he asked, in the same way he'd been speaking to Joss a moment before. He raised his eyebrows questioningly, still lying on his back. "You're lucky, this is more than I usually wear to bed." Scott reddened as his eyes slid to exactly where Logan had known they would.

He turned and left, Jean shot them both a reproving look and followed him out. As soon as the door closed the guilty pair burst out laughing.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Out in the corridor Scott turned to Jean indignantly. He started to speak but she placed a hand over his open mouth, indicating to the door, reminding him that his two tormentors both possessed very sensitive ears.

He was just teasing you. Don't rise to it. And you know he would never… Scot nodded reluctantly and they crossed the landing to their own room.

Joss buried under her covers sticking her head over the edge of the bed to see Logan.

"You're mean!" she accused, grinning. "You know what he's like, that one shift of his eyes is gonna agonize him for weeks." Logan held up his hands innocently.

"Hey, can I help it if the boy wants me?" she threw another cushion.

"Oh, as if you wouldn't!" he didn't deny this, she raised her eyebrows, surprised. "Would you?" he shrugged.

"He could do with it." She inclined her head in agreement. "Would you?" he asked. She considered.

"Yes, probably, bet Jean's boring." Logan frowned at this, she ignored him "He's got a good physique under all those preppy clothes." Logan agreed.

"But, it would be my duty as self appointed guardian to kick his ass, if he fucked you." She smirked.

"Poor Scotty, he'll never know how close he came." They both laughed and settled back to sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Fifteen minutes later Joss heard Logan sigh and turn over again.

"Seriously," she asked, "do you want the bed?"

"No."

"I don't mind, trust me. As a cat I can get comfortable anywhere."

"No. Thanks."

"Sure?"

"Go to sleep Joss."

"Yeah, right sorry…. you sure?"

"Joss!"

Silence. He wondered if he had been a bit harsh, it was probable that Joss was more than a little anxious about going to sleep, but she knew he was there, which comforted her more than he knew.

* * *

Logan lay awake for a few hours after he heard her breath deepen and steady out. Knowing she was asleep, he waited for the nightmare they had both known would come, despite the light-hearted banter. He was just about to drift off when she kicked out suddenly, tangled in the covers. He sat up and moved to the edge of the bed.

Joss was crying out, tossing her head from side to side and starting to roll off the other side of the bed, distressed. Logan reached out and, with an arm around her waist, pulled her gently off the bed and lowered her onto the carpet next to where he lay. She twisted in his arms complaining, but not at anything outside of her own head. He almost dropped her as she lashed out, just missing his face with her fist.

"Hey, hey," he murmured "come on Joss, calm down" she struggled against his hold and shouted out angrily in her sleep.

Carefully, Logan lay down close to her and murmured to her gently, stroking one hand up and down her side. Gradually, she opened her eyes and stared around the room, anxiously. He smiled at her and held his hand still, she frowned a little as the comforting motion stopped and he started again. Joss yawned broadly and moved in closer to him nuzzling her head under his chin, the nightmare banished by his presence. He brought his knees up, encircling her curled up body on three sides and, wrapping his arms around her, fell asleep whispering to her the words of an old song he remembered from somewhere deep in his mind.

* * *

As the first lights of dawn stretched across the room, through the partially opened curtains, Joss stirred and opened her eyes. She was lying on the thick carpet next to her bed, with her head resting on Logans chest, a hand draped across his stomach and one of his strong arms round her shoulders.

Joss couldn't remember how she got there but vaguely remembered becoming aware of Logans presence in the night, whispered words and of course the familiar nightmare. Familiar?

Silently, Joss sat up and ran a hand through her black hair, the old coloured streaks now completely faded, and frowned at the new amendment her mind had chosen to make without prior permission.

Still fast asleep next to her, Logan missed the warm presence of her body next to his and reached out an arm to pull her back down onto the carpet. She lay down next to him and his sleeping body relaxed again as he nuzzled his face in the back of her neck and settled back to his own dreams, now much more pleasant than they had been on his own.

Joss lay still back couldn't relax, as a single tear ran down her face.


	16. Lynaes

Logan looked over a Joss, sitting near to him on the roof of the school. Watching her crouched there rocking back and forth, chewing on the knuckle of her left thumb, deep in thought, he knew something had changed.

The past few nights when he had woken her from tormented dreams she had been even more distraught than before. Crying and shaking uncontrollably, so much so that he had to hold her down by the shoulders until it passed. Then she simply wept, clutching at him balefully and apologising profusely in every language she knew.

She was spending more time alone, on the roof of the school, in the grounds, avoiding even him and she barely ate.

"You gonna go?" he asked eventually, breaking the silence. It was five to six on a Sunday and Joss was due to see Hank. She nodded distractedly and after a further few minutes of inactivity got up, shaking the pins and needles from her long, denim clad legs.

Standing she cast about uncertainly for a moment before turning to Logan.

"I'll uh…see you later?" he nodded.

"Yeah, I'll come find you at seven okay?" she returned the nod, a small jerking movement of the head, golden eyes not meeting his, and disappeared through the chimney stacks.

Logan watched her go then sighed and lent back against the stone chimney behind him, closing his eyes he drew deeply on his cigar. Worrying.

* * *

Hank hurried to his office, late. He was almost sure that Joss would not be there yet, she was yet to be on time for any of their three times weekly sessions, but it was the principle that made him hasten down the last corridor.

To his great surprise, and maybe a little disgruntlement, she was already there, in his chair, waiting. Joss raised her eyebrows at him questioningly, a smile playing on her lips, but didn't say anything and gave up his chair to reposition herself on the other side of his desk. Hank sat down in his reclaimed chair, apologising for his uncharacteristic tardiness. Joss shrugged

"I'm hardly in a position to reproach." Hank nodded in agreement.

"Is there any importance behind your punctuality today, or just a sudden bout of conscience?" he enquired. Joss dropped his gaze, suddenly uncomfortable as she remembered why she had chosen to attend of her own volition for once.

"Uh yeah, as it happens." Silence.

"Care to elaborate?" he prompted.

"…I, uh…" she stopped speaking but her mouth continued to move as she tried to put her words in order. Hank waited patiently, not wanting to jeopardise what may be some kind of break through on her part. "You know I don't like rehashing all my mental shit with you all the time." He nodded,

"Yes, you have made that abundantly clear." Joss smiled a little self-depreciatingly and continued.

"No reflection of your head shrinking skills of course, it's just…I don't like…" she sighed, "..opening up makes me vulnerable, and I don't like needing help." Hank understood this, he had known all along the reason for her caginess but was surprised that Joss was willing to admit it, he nodded and she continued.

"Only thing is, now I do need help and I can't turn to the people, or rather person, I would usually turn to i.e. Me, and I don't know what to do. So I'm asking you." She said all of this in the space of a breath, concentrating on the knuckle of her left thumb. Now she glanced up to gauge his reaction.

"I don't understand." Hank told her hesitantly, "What exactly is it you want me to help with?"

"They've changed." She muttered quietly.

"What have?" Hank asked.

"I don't want to tell you." She stated, Hank started to speak but Joss cut him off. "I don't want to tell you." She repeated, "but I need someone to explain because I don't understand and I don't like understanding things, especially things in my own head." Realisation dawned in Hank.

"Your nightmares have changed?" she nodded sadly. "How so?"

Joss looked up, forcing herself to look at the man she was asking for help.

"Well, you've seen the fun, fun original version, right?" he nodded, remembering the horrible episode of her past he had witnessed, courtesy of Professor Xavier. "Well, this," she continued, gesturing with her hands as she tried to find a way to explain. "This is like, 'Joss is fucked in the head: The Sequel'." He frowned at her use of expletives but let it go.

"What do you mean? Which aspects of the nightmares have changed, the outcome?" Hank asked, hopefully. Joss snorted derisively but with sadness in her eyes.

"No," she replied, sticking to the previous analogy. "This is more casting alterations." Hank didn't mention to his subject that the use of such an analogy betrayed a clear wish to remain separate and approach the topic from a purely fictional point of view he did, however, note it down.

"In what way?"

Silence……

"Why don't you run me through it?" she looked at him reluctantly and he was about to try a different tack when she sighed, often a prelude to her talking, so he stopped.

"I'm in the house," she began quietly. "and it's dark. I'm wandering around looking for my parents but everything seems one whole lot bigger than it should be. Anyway, I can hear muffled voices like they're in the next room so I go in, but they're already dead, all sliced and diced on the floor. And I'm about to run away when suddenly I know he's behind me, but I figure, if I refuse to look at him then he can't hurt me so I'm just going to leave the room but then I hear another voice and I turn around and it's Logan." Hank stopped writing and raised a large blue eyebrow, but refrained from interrupting. Joss continued.

"So Logan's all 'Get the hell away from her.' And Lynaes is all, 'Err…no.' And they start to fight but Logan doesn't have any claws and he's getting real cut up."

"Who's Lynaes?" Hank cut in. Joss told that was the name of the clawed man but refused to disclose how she knew.

She paused. "Anyway to cut a long story short, he's dead and it's my fault."

Hank put his notebook down and rested his arms on the table, looking at her intently.

"Joscelyn, I need you to listen to me when I tell you that what happened to your parents was not your fault. None of it was, there was nothing you could have done." She jutted out here chin defiantly.

"There's plenty I could have done. I could changed earlier, into something bigger. I could have gotten my fathers shotgun out of the cupboard. I could have done any number of things but the point is; I didn't. I'm not going to let that happen again."

"What are you thinking of doing Joscelyn?" he asked her warningly. Joss shook her head and lowered it, he took it as an admission that she didn't know.

* * *

"Can I please go?" Joss asked suddenly. Hank had been in the middle of a sentence, telling her all about how pleased he was with her grades, now he stopped short and regarded his subject, she looked volatile.

"Yes, of course. I'll see you later at dinner."

She didn't respond, just stood up and left.

As soon as Joss left Hanks office, she slipped into an empty classroom and pulled her cell-phone out of her pocket. Dialling a New York number, she glanced around her, then held it to her ear as the connection clicked.

"Hey, Benny." She greeted shortly. "Listen, did you manage to get anything?" she paused, listening to the reply and, as her contactspoke, a look of grim determination spread across her face. Scribbling an address on the back of a sheet of paper on the nearest desk she crossed out a misspelling and started again.

"E-H-M-E-R-E Place? Right, thanks Benny. Yeah, we're square now. Thanks. Bye now." Joss hung up and, stuffing her phone back in her jacket pocket, folded the address she'd been given and slipped it into her jeans.

On her way out of the room, Joss walked head-long into Logan on his way from the kitchen, beer in hand.

"Hey." He frowned and looked at his watch. "Shouldn't you still be with Hank?"

"He let me go." She answered avoiding his gaze. "Stuff to do, marking, reading boring journals etc." Logan stared at her hard and knew that she was lying.

"Right, sure." He said gruffly. She kept her head down. "You wanna go get a drink?" he asked, ignoring the voice in his head that told him otherwise.

"Uhh…no. Actually I have stuff to do." Logan felt a little hurt, Joss normally jumped at the chance to somewhere outside of the school confines with him.

"Sure. Need a lift anywhere?" Joss shook her head.

"No. I'm getting the next bus into the city. I'm going to kill Lynaes. I should be back before ten, in time to watch that film with you." Logan did a double take.

"You're what? Joss, what!" Logan took her by the shoulders and she looked up, her golden eyes were bright and cold.

"Let go of me, Logan. Please." He held tighter.

"Joss. You don't know where he is."

"Yes, I do."

"You can't kill him."

"Yes, I can."

"You'll hate yourself."

"No, I wont. You might hate me. but I'll feel quite good. Let me go, Logan." He held her still tighter, for a second, he thought she was going to hit him, but then she relaxed and stepped into him, laying her head and hands upon his chest. Logan held her tight for a minute until she drew back and looked him hard in the eyes.

"You know, you mean more to me than anyone. You mean more to me than I do," She told him. "and that's a first for me." He nodded.

"I know and I…."

Then she hit him. Harder than he knew she was able, and right in his left temple, everything went black.

* * *

When Logan came round, he was still on the floor but there were three anxious faces above his. Jean, Scott and Storm.

"Joss." He moaned, he still could believe she'd hit him. Then her words did and hefelt sick.

"We don't know where she is, Logan." Jean told him cautiously. "The Professor tried to use Cerebro but she over-rode the lock and we can't get in. Hank's working on it now. Do you know where she's gone?"

Logan leapt to his feet and swore loudly.

"She's gone to get herself killed." He told her.


	17. The Englishmans cravat

Joss reached the end of the street and stopped to look at the alley running down the side of it. The same alley where she'd met Logan for the first time, it seemed like ages to her, when in reality it had only been three months. Three months of relative security. She stopped herself and forced her mind to stay on topic.

'The Acoustic Motorbike' stood open and inviting in front of her and she let herself in through the main door. Inside, the air was deliciously warm and smelt of hops and coffee. Behind the bar, polishing glasses, leant a young looking man, wearing a cravat and sporting a fine moustache, he glanced up briefly at the door and smiled broadly upon seeing his visitor.

"Joscelyn!" he greeted. "How splendid to see you, where the devil have you been hiding yourself? We'd almost given you up for dead!" Joss smiled back and spread out her arms.

"Sorry to disappoint, Ferdinand, but I'm still very much alive." She hopped up on to a bar stool and tugged at his cravat. "The hell is this?" Her friend brought a hand up to his neck in mock concern.

"I think it makes me look rather cultured, don't you agree?" she laughed.

"You're aware, of course, that the cravat is actually a French thing. If you want to remind people of your English blood, Ferdy, you may want to stick to a bow tie and a pipe." Ferdinand frowned and shook his head vehemently.

"Horrible smelly things, couldn't possibly!"

…………………………………………………………

Hank McCoy threw down his screwdriver in disgust and frustration and swore colourfully under his breath, turning the air as blue as his fur.

"She sure made a good job of this." He grumbled to Logan who was standing impatiently next to him. "I'm afraid I can't say how long this is going to take, Logan."

His companion returned the curse and unsheathed his claws, intending to attack the door, but he knew it was useless; the doors to Cerebro were a foot of solid steel. His adamantium claws may be stronger than steel but the sheer thickness of the doors would make it impossible to break through in less than a day.

"Screw this." He muttered. "I going to go look for her in the city, I know where a few of her friends hang out, I might be able to find something. Keep trying, Blue."

Hank turned his attention back to the broken lock and Logan strode down the corridor in the direction of the left to the schools carport. On his way out he encountered Scott, looking for him.

"Logan." He greeted. "Listen, I was thinking that it might be worth trying a few of Joscelyn's old haunts in the city. You know where she likes to go don't you? I thought we might be able to find her the old fashioned way. In the absence of Cerebro." Logan scowled at the X-Man in front of him.

"That's exactly where I'm going, Scooter." He responded gruffly. Scott nodded.

"Oh, right. Well….." he tailed off, not sure how Logan would responded to an offer of help. The Canadian stopped, on his way through the carport door and turning, raised an impatient eyebrow.

"You coming?" he demanded.

…………………………………………………………………

"So." Ferdinand began, placing a pint in front of Joss. "You're obviously not here for general conversation or you would have already moved onto insulting my hair. How can I help you, my dear?" Joss grinned ruefully.

"You know me too well, Ferdinand." The Englishman smiled smugly and inclined his head. "I was actually hoping you could help me out with something." She admitted.

"What do you need? Money, a place to stay? I am not lending you my car again; I loved that Austin and you positively destroyed it!"

"I need information, and I need something made. Information first."

"Aha, information. Well, you've certainly piqued my curiosity, do go on."

"A location, on a person. I don't know much about him but it's really important Ferdy." He nodded seriously.

"Okay, I'll do what I can. Give me what you do know." She took a breath.

"I heard he's staying in a building somewhere called Ehmere Place. I need to know if that's true. I know his name in Lynaes, pretty sure he's a mutant. And, he's an albino, so he should stick out in a crowd. He's scum, Ferdinand, scum." Ferdinand scrutinized her for a moment before nodding slowly.

"Like I said, Joss, I'll see what I can do. In the mean time, would you please promise me that you're not going to do anything stupid?" she returned the serious gaze, then dropped her head and sighed.

"No." she answered truthfully. "But I need this. Please?"

With a long pause, Ferdinand lifted a phone from under the bar and dialled another New York number. He relayed the information Joss had given him, to the person on the other end and hung up.

"Geordie says he'll look in to it." He told her, she smiled gratefully. "Now, have another pint. The Jämtlands Brewery has a new head brewer, try this…

* * *

_I know, i know. It's short and it still took me ages, sorry! Been very busy but things are quitening down so please bare with me. (I'm working on Gravities Weaknessess too). As always, thanks for reading and reviews are very much appreciated!_


	18. The Black Lily

Scott climbed into the passenger seat of Logans jeep and buckled himself in just in time as the vehicle screamed out of the carport and down the schools long drive, spraying gravel in its wake.

"So…" he began hesitantly after a few minutes of furious driving on Logans part. "…where are we going?" Logan frowned at the road, he hadn't thought that far ahead.

"There's a club." He decided. "In the city, name of 'The Black Lily'. She used to go there sometimes when she snuck off. A bunch of her friends hang out there. Someone has to know where she is." This final statement was intended more to reassure himself than Scott, so the second man concentrated on the first part.

Once into the city, Logan was forced to slow down, he sat swearing under his breath at the busy evening traffic and drumming his hands on the steering wheel. Scott glanced sideways at him.

"You say she's gone after the man who killed her parents?" he asked. Logan nodded distractedly.

"Yeah."

"Do you think she really knows where he is?" He scowled deeply and growled to himself.

"She seemed pretty sure. Joss isn't often wrong, she has people who know things, can get stuff, information."

"Is that who we're going to see?" What sort of people, Scott wondered, the typical shady types straight out of a television set?

"I only met them once, briefly." Logan answered. "Might not even remember me, they were all pretty stoned at the time. Joss was fast asleep, I had to carry her out to the car." His expression softened for a second before the worry set in and it darkened again. Scott didn't say anything.

* * *

Ferdinand finished his pint and addressed Joss, she had been drifting away all through their conversation, letting him do most of the talking, not normally a problem, but it was pretty clear that she was preoccupied by something.

"So, you said that you wanted something made." He tried. She snapped back to attention and nodded.

"Yeah, well two things actually, a pair." She smiled at him. "Of course, I'd never ask anyone else." Pulling a sheet of paper and a pen towards her she drew a rough sketch and pushed it towards him., Ferdinand picked it up and examined it carefully. The picture was of a curiously shaped knife, the handle melted into the long blade which protruded from the handle roughly and inch before curving back round and running parallel to the handle and about three inches past the end. A serrated pattern decorated around the outside of the curve.

"Looks nasty." He commented after a cursory exam. "And vaguely familiar." She grinned.

"They're based very closely on the knives used by Vin Diesel in that film 'The Chronicles of Riddick', in fact I'd go further than that and say they're exactly the same." He held up a finger in recognition.

"Ah yes, and what did you want this beautiful pair to be made of?"

"I was thinking steel. I'll pay for it obviously, I want pure stuff, none of that alloy crap."

He left his stool and led the way into a large room at the back of the bar. Every wall was lined with shelves, there were desks and benches in the centre of the room and every available empty space was filled with what looked liked meaningless junk. What escaped the attention of a casual visitor was that, somewhere amongst the piles of wood, glass and scrap metal, was at least one piece of almost every single different resistant material known to man.

For the right price, Ferdinand could draw the elements he wanted from any available object and manipulate them to take any shape he wanted. His talent was widely sought after as anything made by his hands, or rather, mind, was always of the purest and faultless quality. The two knives he was about to make for Joss would be of the perfect weight and, neigh on, unbreakable.

* * *

Standing in the shadow of a deeply set doorway, Logan pounded heavily on the door. Scott stood a pace behind him, unsure who he expected to answer the door. He had, in his mind, a picture of a scrawny middle-aged man wearing an unwashed Hawaiian shirt and smoking a cigarette. When the door was opened he found that he couldn't have been more wrong.

Facing them, a slightly wary expression on her face was a young woman, despite the urgency of their mission, neither of the two men could help but stare for a moment before recovering his thoughts. The woman looked to be about twenty-five, she was alabaster white, with long black hair and green eyes the colour of emeralds, dressed all in black, topped off with a long leather coat.

"Yes?" she prompted, her eyes were on Logan as though he looked familiar. He cleared his throat.

"Is she here?" he demanded. The woman smiled faintly.

"I assume you mean The Lynx?" he nodded. "You're Logan are you not? Her guardian?" Logan pulled himself together, it wasn't like him to be unnerved by a woman but there was something about this one, something unearthly.

"Yeah," he replied gruffly, kicking Scott who was still staring. "is she here?" The woman shook her head.

"No." he gave her a disbelieving look.

"Really?" She smiled more broadly, revealing a pair of elongated canines, flanking a set of pearly white teeth.

"Why don't you and your silent friend come in? We were about to have a drink." She smiled at Scott, there was something about this woman's appearance, coupled with her silent, cat-like grace that made that particular word 'drink', cause him to shiver.

Scott admonished himself inwardly and took a step forward to shake the her proffered hand.

"Scott Summers." He introduced himself.

"Raven." The name suited her, reminiscent of black ruffling feathers and dark piercing eyes.

Logan exchanged a look with Scott as they followed her through the door and into 'The Black Lily'.

The room they entered was large and open with a stage against one wall, a bar along the other and a set of stairs, suspended by thick cables, leading up from the dance floor to an enclosed room that looked out over the whole of the club through red tinted glass. At various intervals around the edge of the room, were large comfortable looking sofas.

On these sofas sat a collection of colourful looking characters. A young man with a shock of blue hair, two young children with shimmering red skin playing snap with a wolf. A wolf? The two men did a double take, no. No wolf, but a woman smiling mischievously in their direction. A shape-shifter, they assumed, that or a werewolf. A werewolf in the company of a vampire.

There were perhaps five others, but their attention was diverted by Raven offering a selection of beers.

"So, you've lost our Lynx?" she asked a hint of seriousness in her voice.

"We'd actually hoped she was here." Scott admitted rather sheepishly. "Do you have any way of contacting her?"

"Have you tried her cell?"

* * *

Joss switched her phone off and replaced it in her pocket, returning her attention to Ferdinand. His hands were held out, palms upwards, lost in a shimmer of silver and light. Within this cloud, Joss could just make out the forms of two shining blades beginning to take shape. His eyes were open, glazed over in deep thought as he concentrated on finishing them off with the sharpest possible point. Finally, after half and hours hard work, the cloud dissipated and he brandished the finished product. Two brilliantly crafted knives, decorated with an intricate pattern of teeth and tails, perfectly balanced and shaped to slice through the air with minimal resistance, deadly beautiful.

Joss stepped forward and took one in each hand, the blades curved round her grip and glinted in the reflection of the strip light hanging from the ceiling. She executed a few deft slices and straightened up, a grimly satisfied smile on her face.

"Thank you, Ferdy." She nodded. "These should do fine."

* * *

_Hello all, thanks for reading! Just wanted to say that Raven is not my creation but that of my Besy Friend Nats. To read Ravens story (which rocks by the way) go here http/s3. and, as usual reviews, comments, advice and criticism is very much welcome!_


	19. Ehmere Place

Joss loitered in the dark shadows of a bakery door, staying carefully out of sight; this was not the sort of neighbourhood in which a young girl could safely stand alone in doorways. She didn't want to risk drawing attention to herself all for the sake of an overenthusiastic curb-crawler.

The building across the wide street from her was called Hirogens House, it had once been the best new hope for regenerating this run down area, now, it blended in nicely with the other crack dens and whore houses in the square. The square was called Ehmere Place.

Joss was wearing the two knives that Ferdinand had made for her, one resting on each side of her waist, tucked into her belt. The long black coat she had also taken from him, without his knowledge, had concealed them from any unusually observant members of the NYPD on her way here and, she fancied, made her shadow look rather sinister.

A cigarette hung from the corner of her mouth, wreathing her head in smoke as it mixed with that which she exhaled on every other breath. She had almost been persuaded by Jean to give up but, as she'd said to the man in the store where she'd bought them; "You've gotta die from something."

Occasionally, a dark-windowed saloon would draw up against the curb and pick up one or two of the luckless women from the sidewalk. Joss would draw further back into the shadows, invisible but for the small red glow of her cigarette end. Those few drivers or harried passers by that noticed her obscure shadow continued on their way without indication; this was not a neighbourhood watch area.

There was a dull buzzing and she slapped a hand to her side to muffle the harsh noise that permeated the silent darkness. Drawing her cell from her pocket, Joss flipped it open and put it to her ear.

"He's not there." Came the very English sounding confirmation. "But apparently he normally returns at around one in the morning."

"Apartment?"

"Lucky 13." She sniggered. "What are you up to Joss?" Ferdinand sounded worried. "What is it? A shakedown, a warning call or are you on a payroll to take this guy out?"

"No, Ferdy." She answered quietly. "This one is all me. Thanks for you help." She flipped the phone closed and returned it to her pocket. Almost immediately, it buzzed again, she checked the name, 'Raven'. It could just be a very poorly timed party invite, she reasoned, bringing it back up to her ear.

"Raven, hi."

"Lynx." There was a pause as raven moved across the room. "Are you in danger?" Joss frowned.

"No. Not yet?" she answered. "Why?"

"Your guardian is here," came the reply. "Him and his quiet friend." Joss sighed. She should have known that he would try her friends to fid out where she had gone. At least he was with Raven and the others at 'The Black Lily' and not with Ferdinand. Not that he would have pointed Logan in anything like the right direction.

"His quiet friend?"

"Fairly attractive, in a conservative kind of a way, red glasses." Logan had teamed up with Scott? He must be worried. Joss felt a nasty pang of guilt.

"Don't hurt him." she warned suddenly, there was a soft laugh.

"Not without your say so, Lynx. Shall we send them on their way?" Joss considered, there was always a chance that Logan would find her before she had finished this.

"No." she answered eventually. "Would you keep them there as long as you can? Scott's a total lightweight and Logan's a pretty easy lay, so it shouldn't be too hard."

Raven disconnected her cell and turned to Logan and Scitt, both looking on expectantly. She smiled.

"Lynx is on her way here. I did not tell her that you were waiting." She gestured to the rest of the group. "Won't you have a drink?"

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Scott giggled into his drink and Logan tried not to follow suit. The two of the had been sitting on the comfortable sofas for no more than forty minutes but the colourful liquid they had been given to drink had taken quick effect. Logan's increased metabolism was keeping him more sober than Scott, but just drunk enough to wonder why he wasn't slightly more concerned about why Joss hadn't arrived yet.

_She's on her way. _He reasoned hazily.

"She's on her way?" he repeated to Raven who was sitting across from him. She smiled the same distant smile and nodded.

"Lynx is on her way." She assured him. Logan looked at Scott who was staring dreamily at the woman next to him. For some unexplainable reason he needed to here the same reassurance from him. _Scott always knows what's happening. _He told him self slowly. _He's anal like that._ He nudged the man next to him and the red glasses turned to look at him.

"She's not here yet." Logan told him, Scott's brow furrowed and he looked confused. Scott didn't usually drink more than a single pint. Logan's mind began to clear and he growled menacingly.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Nobody of any great interest had passed Joss for a while and she was beginning to doubt her intelligence when suddenly she noticed a dark movement a few blocks down from where she was ensconced. Stiffening. She drew back, the darkness enveloping her.

There was a tall dark figure on the other side of the street, moving towards her. Through the course of the evening there had been any number of suspicious characters on this street but this time Joss was sure. Something about the way he moved, the right height. A voice of reason in her head pointed out that there was no way that she could remember accurately how tall he was when she had only been about three feet tall the last time that she had seen him, but she ignored it.

Lynaes, for by now she was sure it was him, drew almost level with her, Joss held her breath and fought the temptation to screw her eyes shut until he passed. A warm breeze had sprung up in the night and washed over her frozen face, bringing with it the familiar smells of the city; overflowing garbage cans, car exhausts and too many people. Tonight however, there was another, strange to the city but sickeningly familiar to Joss.

A warm waft of bile. The images from her dreams flitted past her eyes as, like a sickening cue, his odour brought them flying back from her memory.

Joss swallowed hard; fighting to keep the same burning fluid in her throat from mingling with the now over-powering stench of his.

He passed under the only functioning street light on the blackened street and was exposed momentarily; he wore no hood, made no effort to disguise who he was. What he was. The yellow light shone on his skin, yellow in itself, making him look terribly jaundiced. Joss imagined his pink eyes shining like raw flesh in the light and her heart stopped for a moment, as she was sure he had met her gaze. Defying all rational thought, she shut her own and refused to inhale. When she opened her golden eyes again he was gone, gliding up the stone steps to the neglected tenement building in front of her.

Overcome with an urge to flee, to run as fast as she could all the way across the city to 'The Black Lily', to where she knew Logan was waiting. Raven had been right when she had called Logan her guardian, he was. Her guardian angel, always there to protect her, defend her. Except now. Except for when she deceived him.

Could she call him now? He would come immediately, fight be her side, she knew he would but there was not way that she could ask that of him. Not after what she had seen in her dreams. Losing him would destroy her. If this worked, she vowed to herself, if this worked she would never leave his side again. She would tell him everything she had neglected to reveal before and never ever lie to him again.

_And if it doesn't work?_ The same annoying voice argued. _Then I won't be around to regret it. _She retorted stubbornly.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Logan held the blue haired boy against the wall of the club, three claw points tickling his throat.

"Where is she?"

Scott held the others at bay, his visor aimed menacingly at the small now standing facing them. Logan dropped the boy with a snarl and turned on the rest of them, focusing on Raven.

"Don't you understand?" he implored. "She doesn't know what she's thinking! She going to die!" he stared into the emerald green eyes meeting his, they scrutinised his own deep hazel ones, wide and glistening in desperation. "She needs me!" He pleaded.

Slowly the eyes softened and her pale face nodded in gentle understanding.

"Yes." She responded softly. "She does."

* * *

_Hey, all. I'm sure you've noticed that this one is beginning to draw to an end bu i'm afraid i'm going to have hold out on you all for a while to allow for the horror that is A-Level exams! Please bear with me and normal service should be resumed by the end of June!_

_(Please note: same applies to Gravity's Weaknesses.)_

_Wish me luck and please don't forget about me!_


	20. The rooftop

The building inside was dark and pungent. It hadn't rained in the city for weeks and the walls, damp from the inside out, were slowly rotting, the fermenting bodies of dead poisoned rats slowly expanding, writhing in a grotesque imitation of life as the muscles atrophied and the internal organs swelled, adding to the bouquet.

The stench burned Joss' nostrils as she followed her nightmare up three flights of deserted stairs.

At the other end of the passage; lucky thirteen.

The door was slightly ajar, in any other circumstances it might even have looked welcoming.

"Said the spider to the fly." Joss muttered under her breath. She remembered that she happened to be the fly in question and stopped smirking.

Nobody left their front door open like that in this neighbourhood, she could here the sounds of several television sets behind the doors that reached between her and her target. The sounds and smells of someone realising that they had burnt a microwave meal, a couple arguing, someone sobbing inconsolably.

Joss cast another doubtful look at the door.

"Oh there's not a chance in hell." She knew he had gone in there, and what sort of person leaves their front door open like that unless they knew someone was planning on coming through it?

She turned and swiftly ascended the next two flights of stairs that led up to the roof, four small black paws making no sound as they crossed the old creaking floorboards.

The door onto the roof was hanging loosely from its hinges, Joss slipped through and out on to the flat darkness. She switched forms to that of a large lynx to reassure herself and her golden eyes picked out the top of the fire escape that led down his side of the building. Refusing to pause for thought she made to move across the roof when her ears picked up the sound of another breathing. That slight nasal whistling that normally sent her to distraction now shot lead through veins as she remembered what Ferdinand had told her.

"_Apparently he spends a lot of time on the roof."_

Joss turned, hardly daring to breathe and saw, for the first time, the shape of another. Sitting on the ledge, right on the edge of the concrete slab that marked the corner of the building. Legs hanging over the edge below him. Lynaes.

Instinctively, Joss switched form again, becoming a full grown Bengal tiger, the largest form available to her. Cursing the fact that Ligers were not naturally occurring and thus, out of her domain. She held back the low rumbling in her chest that threatened to give her away and forced herself to focus. He didn't seem to have noticed her presence yet, she could just sneak up behind him and send him reeling down to sidewalk below, the concrete would break his fall. Maybe bury the two knives she'd had Ferdinand make her in his stinking back; just to be sure.

Alternatively, she could always run. It had worked the first time, but, she reminded herself, she had come looking for him this time.

_Why?_

Joss made a mental note to ask Professor Xavier if it was normal to have an irritating little voice such as this in ones head. He'd probably tell her it was her conscience. Maybe it was him.

_Professor?_ She tried…..no answer.

Joss turned her attention back to Lynaes, though her eyes had never left him, and for no reason that she could explain, changed back to her usual form. Long coat billowing in the wind around her, she drew her knives and scuffed the heel of her foot deliberately.

Lynaes lifted his head and turned slightly, hunched shoulders giving him the look of a bald-headed vulture.

Joss squared her chin defiantly and met his pink gaze. His thin mouth was curled in the trace of a smile and she felt her stomach jump as she realised that he wasn't surprised to see her.

"Little sister." He swung his legs around to meet the roof on which Joss was standing. She felt sick; only one person in the whole world had earned the right to call her that and she had left him to come here and kill the one who now presumed to adopt it himself.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Raven hung up the club phone and shook her head at those watching expectantly.

"Scotch doesn't know where she is, nor do Spider, Dash or Theo." The others of 'The Black Lily' slumped their shoulders dejectedly, apparently those were the four people who, between them, always knew what was going on in any part of the city at any given time and just who was involved. Unfortunately, this time they had fallen short.

Logan swore and kicked a barstool, Scott was tempted to do the same when suddenly his cell phone rang.

"Scott." Came Jeans voice immediately as he answered. "We've found her." He brought a hand to his head in relief and motioned to Raven for a pen and paper as his fiancé recited an address to him. "Scott." She cautioned as he thanked her. "You have to get there now. Joscelyn is in a huge amount of danger." He rang off.

Logan was eyeing him anxiously.

"She found him." Was all Scott needed to say. Logan snatched the scrap of paper from Scott's hand and tore out of the door. Scott paused to say something to the others watching him but, remembering that they had in fact been nothing but a hindrance, took of at a run after Logan.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Lynaes was watching her intently, Joss had adopted a rather convincing air of bravado as he sat across the roof from her. Only two words had been spoken in what felt like an eternity but was, in reality, no more than a few seconds.

"You'd left your front door open." She told him airily, struggling to keep her voice level. "I thought I'd do the neighbourly thing and let you know."

Faced with this huge piece of her past, Joss had once again lapsed into a heavy Irish accent. She had noticed as she spoke that Lynaes did not appear to have any discernable accent at all. He simply spoke the words with no trace of dialect. This man didn't belong anywhere.

He snickered.

"How kind, dear little thing." He stood, his tall frame blocking out the full moon that had shone reassuringly behind him. "Such a little thing you were. So disappointed to loose you I was."

Deciding that now was really not the time to begin criticising his sentence construction, Joss allowed a low rumbling growl to escape her chest. She flexed her wrists, adjusting her grip on the custom made handles. They would never fit any hands as well as they fit hers. The curved blades glinted in the moonlight. Lynaes smiled condescendingly.

"Ah, I see. Here to avenge the murder of our parents are we? How very Bruce Wayne." Joss bit back a whimper, instead snarling as he took a step forward.

"I should have killed you when you had your back turned. You deserve none of the honour that comes with a fair fight." He gave her a sickly smile. And drew his right arm up from his side. Joss heard the sound of bones cracking and bending as it began to lengthen.

"You know." He commented conversationally. "That very first time you turned, when I was done tearing your parents to shreds that is; I have to admit to being more than a little taken aback. Of course now it's obvious that you are just another one in the ever increasing number of mutants but at the time I have to say it came as rather a surprise."

His elbow swung backwards at an unnatural angle as his hand began, slowly, to change. Joss was frozen in fear, her mind completely blank as she was taken over by blind panic. She could barely hear over the sound of her heart beating, the blood roaring in her ears.

Lynaes' pale long fingers continued to lengthen, curving sideways and started to meld together to create a bizarrely shaped fleshy point which took on a shine as it hardened into a cruel looking claw, almost a foot in length and wicked sharp.

The same voice of reason that had been annoying Joss all night now offered up its first piece of useful advice. She dropped into a fighting stance; legs bent, shoulders above her knees, one armed hand raised in front of her chest, the other by her side. Her gold eyes flashed dangerously as adrenalin coursed through her veins, Joss had never before backed out of a challenge that she had thrown down, this was not going to be the first.

Lynaes moved to match her and they began to circle one and other like wolves.

"There aren't any special precautions I need to know about are there?" she asked as they sized each other up. "Once I've killed you I mean. You know; stake through the heart, burying at a crossroads, that sort of thing."

She recoiled as the air inches from her face was shorn in half.

"Just make sure that your soul is at peace with God before I win." He advised, forcing her back with another swipe at her midriff.

"Oh don't be so sure. I'm not six years old anymore." She retorted making an attack of her own. Feigning to the left she dove under his arm raised on the defensive and rolled behind him where she drove a long blade deep into his left calf, feeling his muscle give way as she drew the point down. First blood.

Lynaes let out a strangled cry of pain and lashed out behind him, bringing his clawed limb slicing through the air. Joss dropped to the ground but was too slow to avoid it completely; he scored a line across the back of her head, behind her eyes. She scrambled backwards, regaining her footing out of harms way. The cut in her head was not too deep but head wounds bleed profusely and already she could feel the slick warmth running down the back of her neck.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Hank switched on the external com in the cockpit of the Blackbird and urged the others to hurry.

"The jet's ready people, lets go!" Storm and Jean hastened across the hanger and up the ramp of the X-Men's jet, decked out in the usual black leather suits worn for all their missions.

"Logan and Scott are both on their way to the address that Professor Xavier got but they're on the other side of he city and, given the traffic I'd say they'll be at east twenty minutes." The others strapped themselves in Storm took the controls.

"Lets just hope we get there in time."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Logan pounded down the street, Scott was half a block behind but tiring. Logan's healing factor was rejuvenating his body as he ran but he was determined to go faster.

He swore he was never going to let the damned kid out of his sight again.


	21. The End

_Note: Okay, if all goes to plan this will be the last chapter, unless I get bored or my muse trips off on his own for a while. Anyhoo, big thank you to everyone who has been so patient with the spelling and sporadic updates! Hope this is to your satisfaction! __(Please don't forget about Fetch!)_

_Craaaaazy – lol, no Lynaes is not Joss' brother! Sorry to cause confusion. Thanks for all your reviews!_

* * *

Joss had been holding her own against Lynaes. He was relentless and his dangerous long arm too often kept her out of range. Fortunately, the damage to his left leg impeded his movement and she was able to out manoeuvre him; darting in and out to launch swift single attacks before retreating once more.

The patronizing smile had fallen from his face and his now fought with a nasty grimace. There was a long tear down the back of his shirt that matched an identical one on his scrawny liver-spotted back. Joss had scored a few good hits but at no small cost to herself.

She had discarded the long coat when the fight had begun in earnest and was now sporting a deep gash spanning the width of her shoulder blades. Realising that she was tiring and beginning to slow; through a combination of fatigue and blood loss she now retreated to the other side of the roof. Arching her back, wincing, she tucked the long knives into her belt and caught her breath.

Lynaes also took advantage of the brief pause to dab cautiously at the wound on his leg. He was losing blood.

Joss shook her head to clear her vision, there was nothing else for it; Lynaes' strategy was to keep her too far back to fight properly at close quarters. Where tactics were a failure, brute strength would have to suffice.

Her opponent watched as Joss switched back to her most formidable form. The huge tiger in front of him snarled and bore two-inch, snowy white, canines, it hunched, powerful muscles poised ready to pounce. Lynaes calmly, as though this was what he had been waiting for, reached under his shirt and produced a hand gun.

The black metal shone in his hand as he raised it to level the barrel at his would-be attackers head. She crouched, ears flat against her head, powerful muscles poised like springs, pistons. There was a split second of stillness as Lynaes aimed and Joss took the predators mind into her own. A tigers body was not built for tactical fighting, it knew how to react immediately on instinct and pure innate skill, far quicker than she ever could on her own. Lynaes, in her sights, became a wildebeest, prey.

Joss, in his, became just another victim.

The eerie silence that had descended upon he roof top was shattered as, in a deafening cacophony of sound, Joss launched herself forwards. Back legs propelling her through the air in a heart-stopping roar that echoed off the surrounding buildings. Reverberating in the streets.

At the same time, Lynaes squeezed his hand on the trigger, releasing first one round, then another. The two missiles shot towards her as she shot toward him.

He had raised his aim high when she had left the ground but had over guessed it, the two rounds, meant for her heart buried themselves deep in the broad striped shoulders.

Joss' roar became a snarl of pained surprise as a shard was knocked away from her left shoulder blade. Slamming into Lynaes she threw him from his feet and the pair of them sailed through the air before landing heavily on the other side of the roof.

A huge clawed paw swept down, raking across his ribcage. Lynaes retaliated with his own claw and the two were separated again, both snarling at the other, both bleeding profusely.

The tiger feigned and bore its teeth, Lynaes held one hand to the wound on his torso and wielded his claw at the air between them. They were both exhausted, wounded but now Joss had the upper hand; the tigers body was much better equipped to deal with these injuries than her human body was. Of course, Lynaes still had the gun, held, apparently forgotten in his hand.

* * *

Logan stopped running as he heard two gun-shots and an echoed roar a few blocks over. Nearly there.

* * *

Memories and flashes of nightmares swept past Joss' golden eyes as she willed herself to lose her temper. It had occurred to her that killing Lynaes now might not save her life – she was hurt bad and a pretty long way from help.

So what? There was no chance of backing down now, she'd been preparing for this for years.

Lynaes kept his eyes on the figure in front of him. She had grown far more skilled than he had anticipated, a flash of panic welled in his gut, he suppressed it. Ill-conceived bravado, she was going down. He'd been waiting for this for years.

"Come on then, handsome." Joss taunted. "Lost something in your age?"

"Mercy." He replied menacingly and moved forward, she matched it.

A flash of movement, yellow skin and striped fur. Blood sprays and fur flies. Pink eyes lock with golden. Snarls, bellows and gun-shots. Thudding, scuffing, a splintering sound and suppressed cries. Flesh tears, blood spills, bones break and tears drop to a soundtrack of inhuman noises.

Then silence……………………..

A movement, dragging and stopping. Rasping, wet breathing. The sound of a blooded, choked cough and a shuddering groan.

Eyes open and observe the other, motionless, missing parts.

She rolled onto her back and grimaced as wounds stretched and grew, and taking a deep painful breath inclined her head to watch Lynaes. His eyes were following her movements but his own body was frozen. From her distance, Joss moved the fingers of one hand in the hint of a wave.

The pink eyes glazed over and turned to glass.

* * *

Logan tore through the door onto the roof, claws extended.

* * *

Joss allowed herself a small smile and closed her eyes to conserve the energy it took to take another breath. They didn't open again.

Nothing flashed before her, she saw no bright light. Just eddying darkness as it closed in over her head.

* * *

_Bye bye then. xxx_


End file.
